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Resistance to prevent 'Israel' from extracting Karish gas: Nasrallah

What happened over the course of the past few days signals that Lebanon is entering a new stage.

This is evident through the British-Greek company setting up a rig in the Karish gas field within three months is a violation against Lebanon, putting it in a difficult situation, Hezbollah Secretary-General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah said Thursday during a televised speech regarding the latest regional political developments.

"With the maritime borders and the vast riches in the [Mediterranean] sea, Lebanon today is before an issue that must become a major national cause," Sayyed Nasrallah added.

A "neighboring treasure" is how the Hezbollah leader referenced the riches in the Mediterranean, stressing that all of the wealth lying within and beneath the waters of the sea belongs to all of the Lebanese people, and it is "the last remaining hope to rescue Lebanon from collapse."

He underlined the importance of protecting the national energy resources and wealth, extracting them, and making use of them after their extraction, stressing that this should be a goal for Beirut. "On the regional level, only Syria and Lebanon are not allowed to dig for oil and gas under the threat of sanctions," he highlighted.

"The first threat emitting from the violation of Lebanon's maritime borders is Lebanon being robbed of a large area and all the treasures and [gas] fields it contains," he explained after saying there were three threats facing Lebanon.

The second threat is that "Lebanon is prohibited from extracting its oil, and this is a problem the Lebanese people must find a solution for," he said.

The third one, he underscored, was Lebanon's gas fields being emptied. "In this case, the element of time becomes highly important, i.e., when the time comes that we are allowed to extract [gas], we might not find anything."

"The issues of water, oil, and gas extraction are no less important than the issue of liberating the occupied Lebanese borders [with Palestine]. This issue has many key aspects that must work as a motive to push everyone to act responsibly."

"The main goal should be preventing the enemy from extracting oil and gas from Karish and impeding the activity that will start or that might have already started," Sayyed Nasrallah noted. "Every day we are [not extracting oil], the Lebanese people will be losing wealth and money."

Violations on Karish will be brought to a halt

The Karish gas field is a red line; therefore, all that is extracted from it is contested, Sayyed Nasrallah stressed.

"It is not important where the ship has docked nor where the drilling and extraction are taking place. The dangerous aspect of the issue is that the enemy will start extracting oil from the common, contested gas field, while Lebanon is prohibited from extracting [resources] from its own areas and blocs that have nothing to do with the conflict."

Lebanon, he explained, has the right, the motive, and the utmost need and power, under the banner of "the army and the resistance", in this conflict over the Karish gas field. "The resistance surely has the financial, military, and security capabilities to prevent the enemy from extracting oil and gas from the Karish gas field."

Not all of the enemy's measures can protect the floating rig and the extraction of gas from the Karish oik field, he clarified. "The repercussions of any blunder that the Israeli occupation commits will not only be strategic; they will be existential. Whatever Israel loses in any war they are threatening would far exceed what Lebanon might lose."

The Israeli occupation navy had been preparing to secure the area by means of naval vessels situated both above and below the surface of the sea, including submarines. The IOF also pointed out that they are "working to transfer the Iron Dome system in its naval version to the region."

"The heads [of the republic, the parliament, and the government] having a united front with the backing of the state and all of its institutions gives strength to the Lebanese negotiator," he stressed, noting that it is necessary to leave all domestic disputes behind when discussing an issue as great as Lebanon's territorial integrity.

"We are up against an enemy that does not recognize international resolutions, and the only path it follows is that of using force and arrogance. As per experience, it does answer to any UN resolution. It only responds to resistance and pressure. It was forced to withdraw in 2000 and from the Gaza Strip."

Part 1