Nasrallah: No government change

February 08, 2012
By Hussein Dakroub
The Daily Star

BEIRUT: Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hasan Nasrallah ruled out Tuesday a government change, disclosing that contacts have been initiated with the aim of ending a row between Prime Minister Najib Mikati and Free Patriotic Movement leader Michel Aoun.

Although Cabinet has been riven by political differences since it was formed last June and is currently at a standstill, Nasrallah stressed that the continuation of Mikati’s government, which is dominated by Hezbollah and its March 8 allies, was essential for the country’s security and stability.

Nasrallah also reiterated his support for embattled Syrian President Bashar Assad, saying “a real dialogue table” between the government and the opposition was the only solution to end the 11-month-old turmoil in Syria.

“We are keen on the Cabinet to stay in office. There is no need for mediation given that it is everyone’s responsibility. There are ongoing contacts that will lead to a solution for this crisis,” Nasrallah said in a televised speech on the occasion of Prophet Mohammad’s birthday which was marked in the Arab and Muslim worlds last week.

Nasrallah scoffed at calls by the opposition March 14 politicians for the formation of a new technocrat government in view of the constant rifts between Mikati and ministers from Aoun’s parliamentary Change and Reform bloc.

“There will be no new government,” he said, speaking via video link to a large crowd of Hezbollah’s supporters at a complex in Beirut’s southern suburbs.

“Regardless of its labeling, this government is so far the basis for stability in the country. We must work hard in order [for the government] to achieve something,” Nasrallah said, adding: “Now is not the time for the toppling of governments, neither [is it] the time for political tension in Lebanon.”

He rejected March 14 accusations that Mikati’s 30-member Cabinet was a Hezbollah-controlled Cabinet.

“I say to those who have started to fix their suits and neckties for a new government, there will be no new government,” Nasrallah said.

He did not elaborate on the efforts being made to resolve the Cabinet crisis. But a senior Hezbollah official told The Daily Star Monday that the party has begun behind-the-scene contacts aimed at resolving the Cabinet crisis sparked last week following sharp differences between Mikati and Aoun’s ministers over the thorny issue of civil service appointments.

The government crisis began last week when Mikati abruptly ended a Cabinet session after ministers from Aoun’s bloc rejected the prime minister’s proposed names for appointments to the Higher Disciplinary Committee.

Mikati has implicitly accused Aoun’s ministers of obstructing the Cabinet’s work, saying he will not allow anyone to undermine the prime minister’s prerogatives. Mikati has since said that he will not resume Cabinet sessions before agreement is reached on a formula to make the government productive.

But Aoun hit back at both Mikati and President Michel Sleiman Tuesday, blaming them for the Cabinet crisis. “They [Sleiman and Mikati] don’t want us to reach to the higher positions in the state,” Aoun told reporters after chairing a weekly meeting of his bloc.

In his speech, Nasrallah denied media reports that Hezbollah was involved in money laundering or drugs trafficking to fund the group’s resistance against Israel. He also denied media reports that Hezbollah was involved in any commercial ventures in or outside Lebanon.

But he acknowledged Hezbollah has been receiving moral, political and financial support from Iran since the party was founded in 1982. In his speech, Nasrallah renewed his support for Assad in the face of what he said was a decision by the United States, the West, Israel and some moderate Arab states to topple the Assad regime.

Nasrallah said a solution to end the violence in Syria lay in “a real dialogue table” coupled with Assad’s readiness to carry out political reforms. “Betting on America and money and weapons is a losing bet,” he said.

“The Syrian leadership has agreed to most of the reforms demanded and it is ready for dialogue. Now they [the opposition] are saying it is too late. How is it too late when a war is raging in Syria and when there are some who are pushing Syria to a civil war?” Nasrallah said. “Whoever cares about Syria would never say that it was too late but would instead go to dialogue without prior conditions for the resignation of the president.”

Nasrallah categorically denied opposition claims that his group was fighting along with government forces against protesters and rebel groups in Syria.

Source: The Daily Star.
Link: http://www.dailystar.com.lb/News/Politics/2012/Feb-08/162576-nasrallah-no-government-change.ashx.

Hezbollah Chief Says Hariri Court Has Ties with Western Intelligence Agencies

2011-07-03

The leader of Lebanese Shiite armed group Hezbollah on Saturday described as "unjust" accusations traded against four members of his party of involvement in the assassination on Lebanese Sunni former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, adding that a prominent CIA agent was part of the team of investigators looking into the 2005 killing.

In his first reaction to the indictment, Hassan Nasrallah said the accusations will not stir Sunni-Shiite tension or another civil war in Lebanon.

"I tell the Lebanese...there is nothing to worry about," he said in a televised speech.

Nasrallah said it would be impossible to arrest the alleged suspects, "not in 30 days nor in 30 years."

The Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL), which is probing the Hariri assassination, submitted to the Lebanese authorities this week a sealed indictment. Judicial leaks said the indictment named four Hezbollah members, confirming earlier reports that the U.N.- backed court was bracing to point the finger at members of the powerful Lebanese group.

"This court is politicized and serves a specific purpose, which is to deal a blow to resistance movements against Israel," said the Hezbollah secretary general, reiterating that the STL was an American-Israeli project.

"We are not concerned with this court or anything that comes out from it," said Nasrallah, "We will not allow this court to drag Lebanon into civil strife."

Nasrallah revealed that one of the advisers to STL Prosecutor Daniel Bellemare was a top CIA agent that was tasked with tracking Hezbollah's slain top military commander Imad Mughniyeh.

Nasrallah also described investigators looking into the Hariri assassination and some of the STL staff as "biased and corrupted."

Nasrallah also showed footage of Gerhard Lehmann, top investigator in the United Nations International Independent Investigation Commission (UNIIIC) to inspect the Hariri assassination, receiving a sum of money for information on the investigation he divulged.

The black-turbaned cleric questioned the reason why the UNIIIC shipped 97 computers to The Hague from Israel rather than regular routes such as the Lebanese port and airport. He also showed a voucher issued from the Israeli Customs to that effect.

Source: CRIEnglish.
Link: http://english.cri.cn/6966/2011/07/03/2724s646004.htm.

Nasrallah says opposition will not support Hariri as premier

Sun, 16 Jan 2011


Beirut - The Hezbollah-led Lebanese political opposition will not support the naming of caretaker premier Saad Hariri to form a new government, the Shiite movement's leader Seyyed Hassan Nasrallah said late Sunday.

"The opposition has unanimously agreed not to name Saad Hariri as prime minister of the new government," Nasrallah said during a televised speech on the Hezbollah-run al-Manar television.

"The opposition will exercise its own national convictions and will not be intimidated by the world's reaction on the government collapse," Nasrallah said.

On Wednesday, the opposition Hezbollah bloc withdrew from the unity government amid tensions over the investigation into the 2005 assassination of former premier Rafik Hariri. Tensions have been high in Lebanon amid reports that the United Nations-backed tribunal plans to indict members of Hezbollah, a militant Shiite group.

Nasrallah stressed that the opposition "will not remain silent on any cabinet that neglects the demands of the people."

Lebanese President Michel Suleiman will start consultations Monday with the various parliamentary blocs to name a new premier, who will be able to form a government and end the political impasse in the country.

"The main reason for the government resignation is its inability to face the repercussions of indictments while insisting on financing a tribunal which is conspiring against the Resistance (Hezbollah)," Nasrallah said.

Nasrallah confirmed that Lebanese officials were informed that indictments in the Hariri case will be submitted Monday to the pre- trial judge Daniel Fransen.

The Lebanese MTV television station on Sunday quoted Special Tribunal for Lebanon Chief of Public Affairs Crispin Thorold as saying that General Prosecutor Danielle Bellemare would hand over the indictment to Fransen before Wednesday.

" I would like to be very clear and honest. In the coming days, there will be two tracks: The first is the parliamentary consultations to name a new PM, and the second is that of the upcoming indictment," Nasrallah said.

The expected indictment had divided the government, after reports indicated that Hezbollah members would be named in connection with Hariri's assassination.

Hezbollah has rejected any possible charges and described the work of the tribunal as a "US-Israeli project."

The tribunal was created by a 2007 UN Security Council resolution to try the people who plotted the attack which killed Hariri.

The former premier was assassinated in a car bomb attack on the Beirut seafront on February 14, 2005, which also killed 22 other people.

The political turmoil has prompted the leaders of Turkey, Qatar and Syria to attend a mini-summit in Damascus Monday to try to find a solution to the political crisis, in the wake of the collapse of the unity government.

Source: Earth Times.
Link: http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/news/362604,not-support-hariri-premier.html.

Nasrallah: 'Violations' against Lebanese in UN probe unacceptable

Thu, 28 Oct 2010

Beirut - Hezbollah chief Seyyed Hassan Nasrallah said late Thursday that his movement would not stand idly by while "violations" were carried out against Lebanese citizens by United Nations investigators probing the 2005 assassination of former premier Rafik Hariri.

"We refrained in the past from commenting on the work of the UN investigators, so that no one would say that we are obstructing the probe," he said in a speech aired on the Hezbollah-run al-Manar television station. "But now, no. We have reached a point that we can no longer be silent."

His speech came a day after two investigators affiliated with the UN Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL), were assaulted by women in Beirut's southern suburbs - a Hezbollah stronghold.

Tensions have run high in Lebanon since reports surfaced that the UN-backed tribunal is poised to indict members of the radical Shiite movement for Hariri's 2005 murder.

Hezbollah has rejected the charges and dismissed the tribunal as an "Israeli project."

The two court investigators and their translator were entering a private gynaecology clinic Wednesday when some 150 women blocked them from proceeding any further.

One of the women reportedly snatched a briefcase containing documents from the hands of one of the investigators.

Iman Sharara, who runs the clinic and is believed to be close to Hezbollah, said the investigators, who had scheduled an appointment with her, requested contacts for 17 patients.

"I think we have reached a very sensitive point that is linked to our honor and that requires a certain response," Nasrallah said.

"I want to ask Lebanese officials and citizens a question: Who of you would agree to allow someone to look at the medical records of your women?" Nasrallah questioned.

According to local media reports Hezbollah was aware that STL investigators had scheduled an appointment with Charara four days prior to Wednesday's incident.

Nasrallah revealed that "minutes ago" he was informed that the United States was pressuring STL prosecutor general, Daniel Bellemare, to speed up the process of announcing the court's indictment.

He added that the indictment would be the same as a 2009 report published in the German magazine Der Spiegel which stated that Hezbollah members would be indicted in the Rafik Hariri murder.

The Hezbollah chief concluded his short speech by calling on the Lebanese people to deal with the demands of the investigators according to their conscience.

Nasrallah's speech came just hours after UN special envoy for Lebanon, Terje Roed Larsen, said that Lebanon was a "hyper-dangerous" state because of the heavily armed militias operating there.

Larsen called for urgent efforts to disarm groups such as the Iranian-Syrian backed Hezbollah in Lebanon, warning that there was "a hurricane blowing up" in the Middle East.

Source: Earth Times.
Link: http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/news/350895,lebanese-un-probe-unacceptable.html.

Qatari premier meets Hezbollah leader in Lebanon - Summary

Beirut - Visiting Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Hamad Bin Jassm al-Thani met for talks with Hezbollah chief Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah in Lebanon on Saturday, the radical Shiite movement said in a statement.

The two discussed the latest domestic and regional developments, including Israel's recent accusation that Syria supplied Hezbollah with Scud missiles and "Arab responsibilities" towards the Palestinian cause, according to Hezbollah.

"The Israeli and US remarks about transferring Scud missiles to Hezbollah aim at pressuring the resistance forces (Hezbollah) and the defiance nations (Israel and Syria)," Nasrallah said in a separate statement.

"There is no eruption of war in the region in the current period because there are no political objectives to be achieved (by Israel) through war," he said.

Hezbollah and Israel fought a bloody 33-day war in 2006. Syria and Iran are main backers of the Lebanese Shiite movement which is considered a terrorist organization by the US and European Union.

The Qatari premier has met with several Lebanese officials since his arrival in Beirut on Wednesday. He and his Lebanese counterpart, Saad Hariri, signed 13 economic, media, security and agriculture agreements with his counterpart Saad Hariri.

Source: Earth Times.
Link: http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show/321542,qatari-premier-meets-hezbollah-leader-in-lebanon--summary.html.

Jumblatt discusses Damascus visit with Nasrallah

Hezbollah Secretary General Seyyed Hassan Nasrallah has met with Lebanon's Druze leader Walid Jumblatt as the country eyes rapprochement with neighboring Syria.

The talks between Nasrallah and Jumblatt focused on the latter's visit to Syria and assessed his March 31 meeting with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in Damascus, said a Friday statement by Hezbollah.

The Lebanese lawmaker and the leader of Lebanon's Progressive Socialists Party (PSP) thanked Nasrallah for his mediating role in making the visit possible.

The visit came in the wake of improvements in ties between Syria and Lebanon.

Jumblatt is known as one of Syria's harshest critics, but in March he said he was ready to bury the hatchet.

During the meeting, both leaders reiterated their commitment to resistance against Israeli threats.

"They also agreed on enhancing the coordination efforts between Hezbollah and the PSP, in order to consolidate coexistence and national unity," the statement added.

Jumblatt also called for cooperation between Hezbollah and the Lebanese army.

Source: PressTV.
Link: http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=122881§ionid=351020203.

Hezbollah slams Israeli Judaization bid in WB

Lebanon's Hezbollah resistance movement has condemned the new Israeli plan to build 1,600 new Jewish homes in the occupied East Jerusalem al-Quds.

The movement warned that the project seeks demographic changes in the occupied territories.

"The scheme is yet another part of a Judaization campaign that targets the holy city of al-Quds and a provocation of Muslim feeling," the Shia political party said in a statement released on Friday.

Hezbollah also accused the US of supporting Israel's expansionist policies on Palestinian lands.

"The Zionist plan to construct hundreds of homes in al-Quds truly shows American cover to it."

Israel's interior ministry on Tuesday said it had approved the construction of 1,600 new housing units in Ramat Shlomo neighborhood in the mainly Arab eastern sector of al-Quds.

The announcement sparked swift condemnation from the International community including Turkey, Lebanon, Brazil, China, Russia, and even the US and UK.

There are currently 121 Israeli settlements and 102 Israeli outposts built on Palestinian land occupied by Israel in 1967.

These settlements and outposts are inhabited by a population of approximately 462,000 Israeli settlers. Some 191,000 Israelis are living in settlements around al-Quds and an additional 271,400 are spread throughout the West Bank.

Source: PressTV.
Link: http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=120714§ionid=351020203.

Nasrallah: US embassy in Beirut spies for Israel

The Hezbollah leader warns that the US embassy in Beirut engages in espionage activities for Israel, cautioning that the collaboration may lead to the “destruction” of Lebanon.

“All the information which the US embassy gathers in Beirut reaches Israel. Here we are not speaking about a normal foreign embassy which is gathering information for its own government … When it comes to the American embassy in Beirut, it is a different story,” said the Secretary General of the Lebanese Hezbollah resistance movement Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah on Monday.

“And so what is given to the US embassy and what reaches the Israelis, the information, all of these leads to the destruction of Lebanon. This helps the Israeli enemy to understand what is going on in Lebanon, to use this information against Lebanon and to take revenge against our country,” he added.

“What is the difference between espionage networks, which give information directly, or giving information by mediation, meaning giving it to the US embassy who then gives it to the Israeli side?” Nasrallah queried.

Hezbollah has fought off bloody Israeli incursions into Lebanon in 2000 and 2006. The second round of the offensives, known as the 33-Day War, killed about 1,200 Lebanese, most of them civilians.

The movement is also an active member of the country's coalition government.

Source: PressTV.
Link: http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=119821§ionid=351020203.

Report: Ahmadinejad, Nasrallah and Meshaal to meet in Damascus

Lebanese sources were quoted as saying on Tuesday by the Saudi Okaz daily that a meeting between Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Hizbullah Secretary General Hassan Nasrallah and head of Hamas political bureau, Khaled Meshaal will be held in Damascus this weekend during the Iranian leader's visit to Syria. The same sources added that senior leaders of the Lebanese opposition forces will also travel to Damascus to meet with Ahmadinejad.

The report said that the meetings with Ahmadinejad in the Syrian capital with the leaders of prominent Lebanese and Palestinian resistance groups is a clear message Iran's support to them in the event of any Israeli aggression. It is worth mentioning that the Iranian president's recent comments on Hizbullah's readiness to face an expected Israeli war were criticized by officials from Lebanon's majority.

© 2010 Al Bawaba

Source: Al-Bawaba.
Link: http://albawaba.com/en/news/261659.

Nasrallah: Hezbollah will hit Tel Aviv airport if attacked

Hezbollah Secretary General Seyyed Hassan Nasrallah has warned that the movement will strike Israel's infrastructure, including its airports and refineries, in the event of any Israeli attack on Lebanon.

During an address commemorating the assassination of three Hezbollah leaders by Israel, Nasrallah vowed to bomb Israel's Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv should the regime hit Beirut's international airport in any future war.

"If you hit Rafik al-Hariri international airport in Beirut, we will hit Ben-Gurion airport in Tel Aviv," he said via a live video link in Beirut's southern suburbs on Tuesday.

"If you hit our ports, we will bomb your ports, and if you hit our oil refineries, we will bomb your oil refineries," he added.

He also threatened that should Israel bomb Lebanon's refineries, factories or power plants, the movement would retaliate with all its might.

Source: PressTV.
Link: http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=118765§ionid=351020203.

Nasrallah backs Syria's anti-Israeli stance

Fri, 05 Feb 2010

The Leader of the Lebanese Hezbollah movement Seyyed Hassan Nasrallah has expressed his support for Syria's anti-Israeli stance.

According to Nasrallah, Syria's stance against Israel is of great significance in the current situation of the region.

The comments came after Israeli officials threatened Syria with war.

On Thursday, Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman threatened to topple Syrian President Bashar Assad.

"When there is another war, you will not just lose it, but you and your family will lose power," Lieberman said. "There must be a correlation, because unfortunately, until now a military defeat did not mean a loss of power," he added.

The remarks came three days after Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak said Syria should clinch a peace deal with Israel or it would find itself in a “full-fledged war” with Tel Aviv.

Nasrallah also pointed out that Washington and Tel Aviv had a hand in Wednesday's major blast in Karbala.

A bomb planted on a parked motorcycle exploded on the outskirts of the holy city of Karbala, killing at least 23 Shia pilgrims and leaving more than 147 others wounded amid tight security before a huge religious procession on Friday.

The bomb exploded at about 11 a.m. (0800 GMT) in an area known as Ibrahimia, near the east entrance into Karbala, about 80 km (50 miles) south of the Iraqi capital Baghdad.

In another incident on Monday, at least 41 people were killed in northeast Baghdad when a bomb was detonated in a crowd of pilgrims heading to Karbala.

They were among hundreds of thousands of pilgrims who are walking to Karbala this week to observe the 40th day after the anniversary of Imam Hossein's (PBUH) martyrdom.

For the commemoration, the pilgrims will converge on the city where Imam Hossein is buried after being slain over thirteen centuries ago.

Source: PressTV.
Link: http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=117912§ionid=351020203.

Nasrallah vows to defeat Israel if a new war erupts

Beirut - The chief of Lebanon's fundamentalist Hezbollah movement, Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah, vowed Friday that Israel would be defeated if a new war erupts in the region. "The resistance (Hezbollah) is being subjected to psychological warfare, but we will defeat Israel and change the face of the Middle East in the event of a confrontation," Nasrallah said in a speech to the Arab International Forum for Supporting the Resistance.

"I promise you ... in any coming confrontation, we will foil the aggressors' objectives, defeat the enemy, achieve a historic victory, and change the face of the region," he said via video link to delegates at the UNESCO Palace in Beirut.

"Lebanon has abandoned the myth saying 'Lebanon's strength is in its weakness' to the more truthful 'Lebanon's strength is in the solidarity of its army, people, and resistance'," he added

Hezbollah and Israel were embroiled in a 33-day war in 2006 which destroyed most of Lebanon's infrastructure and killed 1,200 people, mostly civilians.

Nasrallah said his movement had got where it was despite what he called the worst Arab situation and "being stabbed in the back" by some forces.

"The resistance is still facing many threats topped by defamatory accusations of committing crimes, drug trafficking and blind submission to Iran and Syria," he said.

Nasrallah was referring to a report published last week in the German magazine Der Spiegel, claiming his movement is using drug trafficking in Europe to gather funds.

Hezbollah is financed by Iran and supported by Syria.

Source: Earth Times.
Link: http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show/304010,nasrallah-vows-to-defeat-israel-if-a-new-war-erupts.html.

Nasrallah: Israel's greed, brutality have no borders

Hezbollah Secretary General Seyyed Hassan Nasrallah has urged Muslims to be vigilant against the "borderless Israeli greed and brutality."

"Israel is an entity that has stolen Palestine and Jerusalem Al-Quds. This entity's greed, terrorism and brutality have no borders," said Nasrallah who was addressing thousands of people in Beirut on Sunday as part of ceremonies held to mark the Ashura anniversary.

"Millions of refugees in Palestine and outside Palestine have been living far away from their homes for decades. More than 11,000 prisoners and detainees are living in very harsh conditions in Israeli prisons," he noted.

"[Palestinian] houses are being demolished and agriculture is being destroyed in order to force Palestinians to flee," Nasrallah said.

Nasrallah also condemned the "US hegemony" in the Middle East.

He said that "threats against Arabs and Muslims are presented by the American hegemony and its plan to take control of the region."

"We call on the [Islamic] Ummah to show vigilance against the real nature of the hegemony and not be tricked by the rhetoric and pledges of freedom, democracy and human rights," the Hezbollah chief added.

"We condemn the American plots and the crimes committed by the US administration in Iraq and Afghanistan and we condemn the US participation in Israeli crimes in Palestine and Lebanon," Press TV quoted Nasrallah as saying.

The Hezbollah Secretary General went on to add that the oppressed nations will achieve victory against the "American hegemony."

Source: PressTV.
Link: http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=114749§ionid=351020203.

Nasrallah: Americans first victims of US brutal policies

Hezbollah Secretary-General Seyyed Hassan Nasrallah has described American leaders as anti-human and brutal, saying US citizens are the first victims of such leaders.

"US authorities are anti-human," the 49-year-old Nasrallah said, adding the country is governed by the most brutal and greedy individuals.

The Hezbollah chief made the remark during a televised speech marking the eighth day of Muharram on Friday night.

In a reference to the US invasion of Afghanistan and Iraq in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks Nasrallah said that "The American democracy has victimized the Iraqi and Afghan people."

Years after the US-led invasion of the two Muslim countries, daily violence is calming the lives of people in the two war-ravaged states.

The Hezbollah Secretary General also urged his country's politicians to "observe a one-year truce" in an attempt to avoid new conflicts.

Nasrallah also called for giving the unity government an opportunity to function.

"Let those who don't want to tackle the people's priorities resign from the cabinet," he noted.

Nasrallah has headed the Hezbollah resistance movement since 1992 when his predecessor, Abbas Moussaoui, was killed in an Israeli helicopter raid.

UK ready to 'alter legal system to appease Israel'

Hezbollah's leader Seyyed Hassan Nasrallah says the UK is prepared to introduce reforms to its legal system to appease Israel.

Hezbollah Secretary General Seyyed Hassan Nasrallah on Wednesday criticized the British government's decision to reverse an arrest warrant for former Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni.

"Britain who claims to have the world's oldest democratic system has expressed readiness to make changes to its legal system to avoid issuing arrest warrants for Israeli officials over committing war crimes," Nasrallah said.

A British court recently issued an arrest warrant for Livni over links to Israeli war crimes against Palestinians during its December 2008 - January 2009 offensive which left over 1,400 Palestinians dead in the Gaza Strip.

Livni canceled her participation in a meeting in London after the verdict was issued.

The arrest warrant sparked furor among Israeli officials who warned the UK of strained relations.

"Israel calls on the British government to fulfill, once and for all, its promises and prevent an abuse of the British legal system against Israel and its citizens by anti-Israel elements," a statement by the Israeli Foreign Ministry said.

"The lack of determined and immediate action to correct this distortion harms the relations between the two countries," it added.

In response, British Foreign Secretary David Miliband expressed regret over the verdict and vowed to alter the law so that judges could no longer issue arrest warrants against Israeli officials or military officers.

Several Israeli officials have canceled visits to Britain because of similar arrest warrants issued after the Gaza war.

Nasrallah warns of Israel's fresh psych-war

Hezbollah Secretary General Seyyed Hassan Nasrallah has warned about what he describes as Israel's continuing campaign of psychological warfare.

Nasrallah on Monday called on Lebanon to remain steadfast in confronting Israeli psychological warfare, which he said would not cease to exist, but would instead escalate in the future.

He said Israel was seeking two objectives in its psychological warfare, in the first place to "intimidate" Arab countries to either "give in or step back" and in the second, to "recover self-confidence" in Israelis.

Nasrallah also underlined the need to remain vigilant in combating Israeli psychological warfare, reiterating that "insight" and a better understanding of the situation could help overcome Israel.

The Hezbollah leader promised that Lebanon will continue to confront Israel.

"I tell Israelis that you tried every form of psychological warfare against us, but in return you received nothing but greater bravery, stability and faith from our side. In the future, we will do the same thing."

Hezbollah leader hails Hariri's landmark visit to Syria

Hezbollah Secretary General Seyyed Hassan Nasrallah has hailed the Lebanese prime minister's visit to Syria, calling it a practical step to open up 'new horizons' in ties between the two Arab neighbors.

"The important and historic visit helps make the atmosphere comfortable between the two countries. It will also help prevent any Shia-Sunni strife," Nasrallah's office said in a statement late on Saturday.

Lebanese Prime Minister Saad al-Hariri met Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in Damascus on Saturday for talks to end nearly five years of animosity between Damascus and Hariri's March 14 alliance.

His visit opened a new chapter in relations between the countries, which have been characterized by upheaval and suspicion for decades.

"We want to open new horizons between the two countries. The three rounds of excellent talks with the Syrian leader were frank and based on clarity.

"There will be serious steps from our side and on the part of President Bashar al-Assad to translate this cordial and serious relationship into steps on the ground in several fields," Hariri told reporters at a press conference at the Lebanese Embassy in Damascus.

Beirut's relations with Damascus hit rock bottom following the 2005 assassination of Hariri's father, former Lebanese prime minister Rafiq al-Hariri, and the withdrawal of Syrian troops from Lebanon that followed.

The two Arab neighbors established diplomatic ties for the first time last year, with Syria opening an embassy in Beirut, while Lebanon sent an ambassador to Damascus.

Lebanese analysts say an improvement of ties with Damascus would bridge the political divide in Lebanon, ease sectarian tensions, and provide Hariri with the necessary authority to push through long-delayed economic and other reforms.