Raad: We Will Stand by the Lebanese Army
MP Mohammed Raad, the head of Hizbullah's Loyalty to Resistance bloc, vowed Monday that Hizbullah will stand by the Lebanese army in its expected battle against the jihadist Islamic State group.
“We will stand next to the army, in front of it and behind it, so that the country triumphs in this battle. We don't care about our position in the battle, what's important is the country's victory,” Raad said.
Hizbullah chief Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah had on Friday announced that his group and the Syrian army are ready to assist the Lebanese army in its anticipated offensive in order to “lower the casualty toll” among Lebanese troops.
According to Nasrallah, the Lebanese army will decide when to launch the offensive and "from the other side the Syrian army and Hizbullah are ready."
Nasrallah said if the battle against IS is launched from both Syrian and Lebanese territory "that will lead to victory and be less costly for everyone."
Addressing IS directly, he said: "The Lebanese and Syrians will come at you from all sides."
There was no immediate comment from the Lebanese army.
Nasrallah said that IS holds around 296 square kilometers on both sides of the border, of which 141 sq km are in eastern Lebanon.
His Shiite movement is a key ally of the Syrian government of President Bashar al-Assad and has been battling alongside regime forces since the onset of the conflict in 2011.
Nasrallah's remarks came a day after nearly 8,000 Syrian refugees and jihadists from al-Qaida's former Syrian branch were bused back to Syria from a Lebanese border region following a ceasefire deal with Hizbullah.
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