Nasrallah says Hezbollah to maintain readiness until deal with Israel is signed

Hezbollah chief Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah on Tuesday cautiously welcomed the Lebanese, Israeli and American declarations about an imminent sea border demarcation deal between Lebanon and Israel, noting that his group will maintain its military readiness until the final agreement is signed by the two sides.

“We are awaiting the declaration of the official stance by the president… We are awaiting the official stance of the enemy’s government. What’s important is what will happen tomorrow in the meeting of Israel’s cabinet,” Nasrallah said in a televised address marking the Prophet’s Birthday.

“We will await the official stances and only after the agreement is signed we can say that we have a deal,” Nasrallah added.

“Until the Lebanese see the delegations going to Naqoura on TV, we must remain cautious,” he urged.

Dismissing accusations, Nasrallah added: “It is strange that some in Israel and in the Arab media are claiming that Hezbollah wants to sabotage the deal. We have no problem when the Lebanese officials say that the agreement meets the Lebanese demands.”

“We only care about the extraction of oil and gas from Lebanese waters and our stance on demarcation is known,” Hezbollah’s leader went on to say, noting that he does not recognize Israel’s border.

“Tonight we will not issue threats. Tonight there will only be joy and clapping,” Nasrallah added.

As for the funds that will be yielded by Lebanon’s potential gas resources, Hezbollah’s leader called for benefiting from “the experiences of the countries that have sovereign funds,” while noting that Hezbollah is among those who have concerns over how the funds will be managed.

“We must all immunize the funds” that will come from the gas resources, Nasrallah urged.