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Hezbollah Says U.N. May Be "Spying" for Israel
BEIRUT, July 9 (IslamOnline & News Agencies) - Hezbollah chief, Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah, warned Monday that the United Nations would be deemed to be "spying for the enemy" if it hands over to Israel a video-tape made following the seizure of three Israeli soldiers by the Lebanese group.
"The Lebanese state, resistance and people refuse that the United Nations hands over the video-tape recorded on Lebanese territory," Nasrallah said in a speech at the Conference of Arab Parties.
"We consider that such an act will put the U.N. peacekeeping force (U.N. Interim Forces in Lebanon, or UNIFIL) in the position of spying for the interest of the enemy," he said.
Nasrallah also said that, "it is a matter of principle ... because in any case, the video cassette will not offer any new indication about the fate of the prisoners."
He stated that it was Hezbollah that allowed the U.N. peacekeeping force "to film the next day the vehicles that we had abandoned there, for one reason or another."
"As early as the second day (after the capture), they (the Israeli prisoners of war) had blood samples, but it did not help them" to determine the fate of the Israeli prisoners," he said.
On Saturday, Hezbollah and the Lebanese government slammed a U.N. decision to let Israel view the video-tape made by UNIFIL the day after the October 7 capture of the three Israeli soldiers by Hezbollah forces in the disputed border area of the Shebaa Farms.
However, U.N. spokesman Fred Eckhard said Monday that, despite a request by Israeli Defense Minister Binyamin Ben Eliezer for an unedited version of the tape, the U.N.'s "decision was to hand an edited version of the tape and that there is no reason why this should change."
Hezbollah also holds a fourth Israeli, who the group claims is an agent of the Israeli intelligence service Mossad. Israel, for its part, says he is a retired colonel, now a businessman.
Nasrallah also repeated that Hezbollah would refuse to provide information about the four Israelis his group is detaining without the release of prisoners held by the Jewish state.
"No mediation or delegations or states can get information about the fate of the prisoners held by Hezbollah, unless it is in return for the requested detainees held by the Zionists and chosen by Hezbollah," he said.
"And this is final and decisive," Nasrallah added.
Despite repeated calls by the U.N., the European Union and the International Committee for the Red Cross, Hezbollah has continued to deny access to the four Israelis.
Nasrallah also warned that if Israel wanted to declare war in the region, "the Zionists can determine the beginning of the war, but they will not be able to determine its end, length, size, geographical area or the unforeseen surprises."
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