Hizbullah-Affiliated Lebanese Academic Sadek Al-Naboulsi On The Maritime Border Deal With Israel: Negotiations Are Part Of The War; Hizbullah Will Destroy The Agreement When The Balance Of Power Changes

Hizbullah-affiliated Lebanese academic Sadek Al-Naboulsi said in an October 18, 2022 show on Al-Jadeed TV (Lebanon) that the recent maritime border agreement between Israel and Lebanon does not mean that the conflict between the two countries is over or that Israel is a legitimate entity. He explained that negotiations are just part of the war against Israel, and he said that as soon as the balance of power changes and Hizbullah gets the opportunity to "destroy" this agreement, it will do so. For more about Sadek Al-Naboulsi, see MEMRI TV Clips nos. 9765, 8793, 8053, 7834, and 7157.

Sadek Al-Naboulsi: "Hizbullah does not recognize the existence of the [Israeli] enemy altogether. No one should claim that the demarcation of the maritime border is the end of the conflict. On the contrary. It does not substantiate any [Israeli] legitimacy. What happened is dealing with reality. Nothing more and nothing less. This [border demarcation] divides economic interests. Does this mean that I admit that these waters or fields belong to the enemy? Absolutely not.

[...]

"Today there is something called Israel. Can you deny this? These are facts on the ground. Israel is out there and you have to deal with it. Addressing reality does not mean in any way relinquishing our principles or recognizing any legitimacy or rights of the enemy. In the [current] balance of power, we are weaker than the enemy and so far we have been unable to gain our rights on land and at sea. Therefore, by no means am I saying to the public that these are the demarcated borders and that we must simply accept reality. Negotiations are part of the war, part of the conflict. So the enemy had to invest a lot of effort to achieve what it did. Therefore, as soon as the balance of power changes, the agreement will fall apart and change. Hizbullah says: 'We don't accept all this demarcation of borders, but we deal with these things in a very realistic manner. As soon as the balance of power between the Israeli enemy and us changes, and we get a historic opportunity to destroy this agreement, we will destroy it."

Interviewer: "Wow..."

Al-Naboulsi: "Yes, why not?"

Interviewer: "This is Hizbullah's position? They said that we should applaud and be pleased..."

Al-Naboulsi: "What I am saying... This is the Israeli enemy..."

Interviewer: "Whenever Hizbullah is capable of destroying the agreement, it will do so?"

Al-Naboulsi: "We do not recognize the Israeli enemy."