"History will always remember that an Arab man called Hasan Nasrallah has succeeded with a small group of men in doing what other governments have failed to do," said Isaac.

CAIRO — Egypt's Copts have hailed the Lebanese resistance movement Hizbullah and its chief Hassan Nasrallah as a source of pride to Muslims and the Arab world, and launched a fund-raising campaign to help the Lebanese people in their current trial.

"All Arabs must be proud of Hizbullah's gallantry," Bishop Rafiq Gris, the spokesman for the Egyptian Catholic Church, told IslamOnline.net Monday, July 31.

"No matter what the results will be, Hizbullah has proved that the 'invincible' Israeli army is too weak and shown that a Frankenstein created by the Arab rulers was brought to his knees by a few number of fighters," added Yuhana Qaltah, a writer and columnist.

Hizbullah has inflicted heavy losses on the powerful Israeli army and proved in no way an easy meat.

Its fighters forced Israeli forces to withdraw from the two strategic towns of Bint Jbeil and Maroon Al-Ras they had seized earlier.

Hizbullah has downed at least two Apache helicopters and damaged a giant warship at the very beginning of the conflict.

Famed filmmaker Youssef Chahine said Nasrallah is a "source of pride to Islam."

"Hizbullah is a symbol of Arab dignity," he told Reuters on Sunday, July 30.

The Cannes-awarded director said he hoped to shake hands with Nasrallah in a visit to Beirut earlier this year.

"Nasrallah welcomed my visit…I'm really proud of him," Chahine added.

Chahine issued Sunday a statement addressed to the US right wing after the grisly Israeli massacre in the southern Lebanese city of Qana, which killed at least 60 civilians, including 37 children.

"The chaos is to strike civilians just like combatants….The chaos is to vent your anger on orphans…The chaos is to kill pregnant women and toddlers…The chaos is to annihilate an entire population…The chaos is to usurp freedom with the New Middle East dreams," he wrote.

Duty

"I'm really proud of him (Nasrallah)," Chahine said.

Orthodox Bishop Abram Girgis said it is a "duty" on both Muslims and Christians to support all resistance groups whether in Lebanon, Palestine or Iraq.

"Resistance is a legitimate act," he stressed.

George Isaac, of the Kefaya opposition, said the Egyptians should stand up and be counted.

"We should at least hold rallies on a daily basis and grassroots conferences in solidarity with the Lebanese resistance," he said.

"History will always remember that an Arab man called Hasan Nasrallah has succeeded with a small group of men in doing what other governments have failed to do with their vast resources and sophisticated weapons."

Bishop Gris said the Israeli offensive on Lebanon has exposed the Arab leaders, who proved "impotent" to stop the war.

"Some of them even wished Israel would win the fighting to avoid the emergence of Hizbullah-styled groups in many Arab countries," he added.

Raising Funds

Gris said the Catholic Church has launched a fund-raising campaign for the Lebanese people.

"We started raising funds to send an aid convoy in the name of all Egyptian Copts to our brothers and sisters in Lebanon," Bishop Rafiq Gris, the spokesman for the Egyptian Catholic Church, told IslamOnline.net Monday, July 31.

"Our hearts are breaking for the Lebanese and feel for the Palestinians," he said. "We do have churches in Lebanon and (occupied) Palestine and know the (Israeli) enemy very well."

He said that Catholic churches in Lebanon raced to give shelter to thousands of Lebanese who were forced to flee their homes under Israeli fire.

Amin Eskandar, a prominent Coptic intellectual, said he was planning to visit Beirut to coordinate efforts made by Egyptian and Arab relief groups to bring succor to the people of South Lebanon."

At least 750 people, mostly civilians, were killed since the start of the Israeli offensive on July 12.

The hard-won infrastructure of the Arab country has been left in ruins, with Israel knocking out Beirut international airport, bombing ports, destroying bridges, setting power stations ablaze and reducing houses to rubble.

UN relief coordinator Jan Egeland has said that Lebanon was suffering a "major" humanitarian crisis.

He has also decried the Israeli blockade on Lebanon which has blocked the delivery of humanitarian aid.