Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah gave his first speech on Friday since the Beirut blast that killed nearly 200 people and injured more than 5,000 others.
During the speech he stressed that Hezbollah was not responsible for the events that transpired.
“We have no rockets or explosives there, nor has there been in the past,” he said of the terror organization’s presence at the Beirut port. “We have nothing there: no missiles, no ammunition, no weapons, no ammonium nitrate, not even a rifle.”
He added that “any claims that Hezbollah runs Beirut Port are lies.”
Nasrallah mentioned Israel right at the start of his speech.
“I will not talk today about the Israeli enemy,” he said, “only about the disaster that befell Lebanon.”
Though he did say, “We know more about the port of Haifa than the port of Beirut. The port of Beirut is not our responsibility, whereas the port of Haifa is part of our defense strategy.”
The terror leader said it is noteworthy that the event effected people of all religious sects and that several Hezbollah operatives were killed and wounded in the disaster. Moreover, he said that many members of his organization did not know what was going on – “some thought it was an earthquake.”
He said that some media outlets spread rumors that Hezbollah was responsible or that it was Hezbollah weapons that caused the tragic event. But he said the rumors were not true.
“This is an attempt to incite the Lebanese people against Hezbollah,” he said. He called the claims “unjust.”
Nasrallah added that Hezbollah is ready to offer help in this crisis. “All of Hezbollah’s institutions and capacities are here to help the Lebanese state after the Beirut blast,” he said. “Hezbollah is ready to help any family that has lost its home. People must not stay on the streets.”
Reuters contributed to this report.Watch the full speech:
Comments are closed.