The balancing act of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah

In the Khirbet Salem cemetery, pictures of “martyrs” Hezbollah’s, freshly fallen against Israel, rub shoulders with fighters killed during previous wars, weakened. “Islamic Resistance”. On a hill in southern Lebanon, ten kilometers as the crow flies from the border of the Jewish state, this historic stronghold of God’s party has become a pilgrimage site. This Sunday, January 14, weary fighters and families are dressed in black Wisam came to pay his last respects to Tawil. A child from the village, Radwan, a 48-year-old commander of the elite force, was killed in an Israeli attack on January 8.

On the dais of a Shia religious center, his son Hussain, without giving in to his emotions, delivered the funeral oration of this father, who was hailed as a hero. The boy embodies the next generation that the leader of the Shiite movement, Hassan Nasrallah, wants to glorify, along with those who lead. “ The struggle for the liberation of Palestine. Since the outbreak of war in the Gaza Strip on October 7, 2023, clashes have occurred on both sides of the Israeli-Lebanese border. 141 killed in Hezbollah ranks. Through a screen, Nasrallah promised resistance, but not all-out war, to the hundreds of activists who came to hear him that day.

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The strategy has not wavered since Hezbollah’s leader outlined it on November 3, 2023. The elimination of Wissam Tawil and Hamas leader Saleh al-Arouri in Beirut sparked a carefully crafted response. Calculated on the principle of reciprocity and in compliance with the tacit rules of engagement between the two belligerents. Maintaining a balance of deterrence with the Jewish state is the goal that Hassan Nasrallah set for the confrontation he began for himself. “Support Front”

to his ally Hamas.

Neither he nor his Iranian sponsor wants a war in which they have much to lose. With a raised finger, the Shiite leader maintains the threat, but also reaches for a compromise with the Jewish state. Ball is back in Israel’s court, looking ready to fight. “Hezbollah has gained maturity and flexibility. He will not be drawn into a war he does not want. But we are at a critical and dangerous moment: either we move toward reconciliation, or Israel continues its growth at the risk of slipping away.”

Qasim Kasir, a Lebanese expert with connections to the movement, estimates.

A brilliant strategist, respected even by Israeli officials

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