Hezbollah chief boasts of US pressure ending Gaza conflict: 'Israel has been defeated'
The public and private divide between President Biden's sentiments on the war in Gaza versus his actions has created confusion and frustration amongst his allies.
The chief of Hezbollah on Friday declared that Israel would soon face defeat through pressure from the U.S. to end its campaign while also promising an "inevitable" response to the attack on an Iranian consulate.
"As Biden begins to hedge on U.S. partners like Israel through his rhetoric, Iranian partners and allies are circling the wagons and limiting the political distance between them," Behnam Ben Taleblu, a senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, told Fox News Digital. "This is an own goal of strategic proportions."
"The administration risks enabling the Axis of Resistance even further through such rhetoric and actions," Taleblu added.
Hezbollah’s secretary-general Hassan Nasrallah on Friday gave a speech in commemoration of Iran’s Quds Day, an international day expressing support for the Palestinian people and calling for an end to the "Israeli occupation."
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Nasrallah’s speech, which was televised, focused on how the "U.S. has repeatedly voiced desire to hold talks with Iran, but the Islamic republic was reluctant," according to the MEHR News Agency, a semi-official news agency of the Iranian government.
"Iran has not compromised, nor will it in the future on the regional issues," Nasrallah promised. "Some are in denial about the fact that Israel has been defeated."
"Relations with Iran is a source of pride, those who must feel ashamed are those who seek to normalize ties with Israel," he added.
The rest of the speech focused on how the war has developed, with boasting that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his fellow officials "are still out of their minds" six months after the Oct. 7 terrorist attack on Israel.
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"Netanyahu is neither capable to destroy Hamas nor capable to release the captives held in Gaza," Nasrallah said, according to reports. He added that "Israeli atrocities in Gaza are out of failure and lack of options."
Most importantly, Nasrallah engaged again in touting Iran’s role in the Israeli-Hamas conflict — something that Tehran had resisted and actively denied when the conflict started. In recent months, Iranian officials have more brazenly discussed their ties to Hamas and praised Hamas achievements as achievements of the "Axis of Resistance."
"The Islamic Republic offered enormous sacrifices on economic, political and security levels because of this position," Nasrallah said, according to a translation by Hezbollah mouthpiece Al-Manar, adding that the attack on Iran’s consulate in Damascus would prove "a pivotal moment in this battle."
"Be certain that Iran’s response to the targeting of the Damascus consulate is inevitable," Nasrallah proclaimed, insisting that Hezbollah "does not fear war and is fully prepared for any war."
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"Pivoting on our staunch support of Israel has far-reaching consequences that will far outlast this current war and the tenure of the current leaders," Lisa Daftari, a Middle East expert and Editor-in-Chief of The Foreign Desk, told Fox News Digital.
"The U.S. and Israel’s relationship is one of strategy and security that is imperative, particularly given the current threat of extremist groups like Hamas and Hezbollah’s fixation not only in targeting Israel but targeting the West," Daftari argued.
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"The victories in Israel’s existential fight to eradicate Hamas and any other terror proxy funded by Iran’s regime will be shared by the U.S. as we actively face threats from these same groups both in the region and here at home," she added.
"President Biden’s warnings to Bibi are being heard loudest and clearest by our enemies who are relishing in the thought of Israel being abandoned by the U.S. His remarks made the U.S. that much more vulnerable to such attacks," Daftari concluded.
Reports in the past few weeks have increasingly highlighted President Biden’s personal unhappiness with Israel’s approach, and this week first lady Jill Biden reportedly urged her husband to end the war in Gaza, telling him to "stop it now."
Politico reported that President Biden was "privately enraged" about an airstrike that killed seven aid workers from the World Central Kitchen, and former Obama speechwriter Jon Favreau in response to a Politico story lashed out at the president for refusing to "use leverage to stop the IDF from killing and starving innocent people," saying reports about his private opposition "only make him look weak."
Biden’s rhetoric when discussing the conflict has shifted over the past few months, with some analysts alleging he has done so in response to increasing opposition from the progressive wing of the Democratic Party for his ongoing support of Israel.
Israel has not made comment on this week's strike in Syria. Most recently, a retired IDF brigadier-general referred to the attack as an "alleged Israel strike" in commenting on Iran’s potential responses. The Pentagon, however, said in response to a reporter that it would refer to Israel "to speak to their strike."