Hezbollah leader vows to turn southern Lebanon into 'living hell' for Israeli soldiers

BEIRUT, May 12. /TASS/. The Shiite organization Hezbollah will continue to defend Lebanon against US-Israeli aggression, refusing to surrender, the group’s secretary-general, Naim Qassem, said in a written address to supporters published on Telegram. "The forces of the Islamic resistance will not lay down their arms," Qassem stated. "We will not leave the battlefield; instead, we will turn it into a living hell for Israeli soldiers." According to him, Lebanon "will never become part of 'Greater Israel.'" Qassem’s statement followed reports that eight soldiers from Israel’s elite Golani Brigade were wounded during an operation on the northern bank of the Litani River. According to Al Jazeera, Shiite fighters clashed with Israeli troops on the outskirts of Zawtar al-Sharqiyah, a Hezbollah stronghold, inflicting casualties on them. The reported goal of the Israeli operation was to destroy a military facility used to launch kamikaze drones against Israeli forces operating in Lebanon.