Lebanese Foreign Minister Abdallah Bou Habib: We Cannot Afford To Have A Real Dispute With Hizbullah Because It Would Lead To Civil War; We Would Rather Have A Regional War Than An Unending Civil War

Lebanese Foreign Minister Abdallah Bou Habib said on an October 28, 2023 show on OTV (Lebanon) that Lebanon "cannot afford to have a real dispute" with Hizbullah, because this would lead to a civil war. He said that he would rather have a regional war over a civil war, because a civil war never ends, while a regional war eventually comes to an end.

Habib: "Our clear policy is that we do not want a civil war. As a government, we cannot afford to have a real dispute with Hizbullah, because we do not want a civil war. If we get to choose between a civil war and a regional war, let it be a regional war. A civil war never ends, but if there is a regional war, the Security Council intervenes in a week or two and stops it.

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"We are not going to start a war. The Lebanese army will not fight anyone. The Lebanese army controls the situation in south Lebanon, in coordination with UNIFIL. This does not concern Lebanon only. If Hizbullah joins the war, groups will come from Iraq and Pakistan to join the fighting. This will become a problem pertaining to all the countries bordering with Israel, not just Lebanon. There will be fighting in the Golan Heights, and inshallah, the war will not reach Jordan, but the danger is there."