Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah warned that upcoming Jerusalem Day events may lead to a "major explosion" in the region, during a speech on Wednesday marking "Liberation Day," the day when Israeli forces withdrew from southern Lebanon in 2000.
Nasrallah called the Flag March planned for Jerusalem Day on Sunday a "great provocation" warning that "the Palestinian resistance is unanimous in responding, and things may lead to a major explosion inside Palestine."
"Any attack on al-Aqsa Mosque and the Dome of the Rock will explode the region."
Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah
"Any attack on al-Aqsa Mosque and the Dome of the Rock will explode the region, as it provokes every free and honorable person," added the Hezbollah leader. "The persistence in the aggression against al-Aqsa and the holy sites of the city of Jerusalem will lead to a major explosion in the region and with unimaginable consequences."
Nasrallah called for "anticipation, attention, and preparation for what might happen around us and have major repercussions on the region," saying that "this depends on the folly of the enemy."
He also pointed to the Chariots of Fire drill the IDF is conducting now, stressing that Hezbollah is still on alert and mobilized.
Nasrallah addressed calls within Lebanon for Hezbollah to give up its arms to the Lebanese Army, saying that the government should handle the economic and political crisis in the country before discussing defense strategies.
The Hezbollah leader also pointed to disputes concerning the maritime border between Lebanon and Israel, stressing that Lebanon could have access to oil and natural gas in its waters and that this could help the country's crises. Nasrallah stressed that this "requires daring" and complained that Lebanon "stands idly by while the enemy entity concludes contracts to sell its gas."
On Wednesday evening, Israeli forces fired tear gas at Lebanese citizens who demonstrated along the Lebanese border near Misgav Am on Wednesday evening, as they marked "Liberation Day."
#لبنان | مواجهات بين الشبان وجيش الاحتلال، عند الحدود اللبنانية الفلسطينية في بلدة العديسة.#غرب_آسيا #عيد_المقاومة_والتحرير pic.twitter.com/nbVLrN9mDg
— غرب آسيا (@WestAsia21) May 25, 2022
Video reportedly from the scene showed Lebanese citizens throwing objects at the border wall in the area.
The IDF stated that dozens of people began rioting along the border between Misgav Am and Metula on Wednesday evening, throwing stones and Molotov cocktails at the fence. IDF soldiers were operating in the area.
'The response will be from all fronts, including Gaza'
Earlier on Wednesday, sources from the Palestinian factions told the Lebanese Al-Mayadeen TV that they had "informed the mediators that they would not remain silent over the occupation's provocations and attempts to impose new facts in Jerusalem" and would "not allow settlers to go roaming in Jerusalem and its streets."
The sources warned that "the response to such provocations will be from all fronts, including Gaza," adding that "all options are on the resistance's table to confront the occupation's provocations, including the military option."
The factions also demanded from mediators that Israel return the situation on the Temple Mount to how it was before 2000, according to Al-Mayadeen.
According to the report, Israel told mediators that the march would take place on the same route it took in previous years, through the Damascus Gate and Jaffa Gate and that police would prevent any provocation to Palestinians during the march. Israel also told mediators that there would be no change to the status-quo on the Temple Mount.
Israel additionally warned mediators that any rocket fire from the Gaza Strip would lead to a "great response" against the Strip. In recent weeks, the Palestinian factions have issued threats against the Jerusalem Day Flag March, demanding that it be cancelled.
Last year, the route of the march was changed so that it wouldn't pass through the Damascus Gate after weeks of tensions and violence in Jerusalem and on the Temple Mount. Despite the change, rockets were fired from Gaza during the march towards Jerusalem, sparking Operation Guardian of the Walls.
Last week, Israeli authorities announced that the Flag March would go through the Damascus Gate this year, as it had every other year except for last year.
'Israel doesn't dare to fire at Hezbollah in Lebanon'
On Tuesday, the commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps' Quds Force, Esmail Qaani, claimed that Israel "does not dare to fire a single bullet" at Hezbollah members in Lebanon, during a speech on Tuesday.
Qaani referenced the killing of a Hezbollah member in an alleged Israeli airstrike near Damascus in July 2020 and threats by Hezbollah to respond, claiming that "from the day Hezbollah declared [that the member had been killed], you did not see a single person in an officer's uniform on the Zionist front, and everyone had run away."
Multiple clashes have taken place along the Lebanese-Israeli border since the airstrike in which the Hezbollah member was killed in 2020.