BEIRUT, Feb 28 (Reuters) – Lebanon’s Hezbollah expressed solidarity with Iran on Saturday as it came under attack from the United States and Israel, warning in a statement of dire consequences for the region without saying whether it would get involved.
Hezbollah, a Shi’ite Muslim militia and political party that has fought numerous conflicts with Israel since being established by Iran’s Revolutionary Guards in 1982, was severely weakened by Israel in a war in 2024, when its leader Hassan Nasrallah was killed.
Israel had warned Beirut that it would strike Lebanon hard, targeting civilian infrastructure including the airport, if Hezbollah involved itself in any U.S.-Iran war.
In a statement, Hezbollah said the consequences of the U.S.-Israeli plan would “affect everyone without exception if left unchallenged”. “We are confident that the American and Israeli enemy will receive a major blow,” it said.
Prime Minister Nawaf Salam said he would not accept anyone dragging Lebanon into “adventures that threaten its security and unity”, a veiled message to Hezbollah.
In a statement released after Israel and the United States launched strikes on Iran, Salam noted the “serious developments” in the region and called on “all Lebanese to act with wisdom and patriotism, placing Lebanon and the Lebanese people’s interests above any other consideration”.
(Reporting by Maya Gebeily, Laila Bassam and Jana Choukeir; Writing by Tom Perry; Editing by Aidan Lewis and Kevin Liffey)
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