Official had earlier said attack on Khamenei would cross red line

Hezbollah condemns strikes on Iran but stops short of pledging to attack Israel

Iran-backed terror group asserts ‘American-Israeli enemy will be dealt a major blow’; US envoy tells Lebanese president that Israel won’t strike if it’s not attacked from Lebanon

Lebanon’s Iran-backed Hezbollah terror group called on Saturday for the Middle East to stand against Israel and the US after they launched a joint military offensive against Iran, after long weeks of escalating regional tensions and burgeoning threats of conflict.

Hezbollah condemned the “American-Israeli hostilities against the Islamic Republic,” but stopped short of pledging to retaliate against Israel, amid fears that it could become involved in the conflict.

The Lebanese terrorist organization also did not intervene in the 12-day war between Israel and Iran last June, which the US briefly joined.

“We call on countries and people of the region to stand strong in the face of these hostile designs,” Hezbollah said in a statement, warning that “its dire consequences will affect everyone without exception if left unchecked.”

“We’re certain that the American-Israeli enemy will be dealt a major blow, and reap nothing but failure from its criminal, tyrannical aggression,” Hezbollah added.

Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem was scheduled to make a televised speech later Saturday, but it was subsequently postponed.

The statement came after a Hezbollah official had told AFP this week that it would not intervene militarily in the event of “limited” US strikes, but would consider any attack against Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei a “red line.” Khamenei was among the senior Iranian officials targeted in the initial strikes.

Before the operation against Iran began, Israel launched a wave of airstrikes on Hezbollah targets — including tunnel shafts and rocket launching sites — across southern Lebanon on Saturday morning.

According to the Israel Defense Forces, Hezbollah was recently working to restore its military capabilities at the targeted sites in order to advance attacks on Israel.

“This activity constitutes a violation of the understandings between Israel and Lebanon and a threat to the State of Israel,” the IDF said.

Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency reported that the Israeli strikes targeted mountainous areas in the south where Hezbollah has a strong presence.

‘Sparing Lebanon’

Earlier Saturday, Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam earlier in the day saying that Lebanon refused to be dragged into war.

“I reiterate that we will not accept anyone dragging the country into adventures that threaten its security and unity,” Salam said on X.

“In light of the serious developments unfolding in the region, I once again call on all Lebanese to act with wisdom and patriotism, placing Lebanon and the Lebanese people’s interests above any other consideration,” he added.

Salam later said his government was making diplomatic contacts to avoid any “repercussions” of the conflict.

At the same time, US Ambassador to Lebanon Michel Issa told Lebanese President Joseph Aoun that Israel will not escalate against Lebanon if it refrains from hostile actions.

Aoun stressed that “sparing Lebanon the disasters and horrors of external conflicts, and preserving its sovereignty, security and stability, are an absolute priority.”

Many airlines, meanwhile, announced the cancellation of their flights to airports in the Middle East, including Beirut.

Salam, however, said Beirut’s “airport remains open” and that “the national carrier’s flights are continuing.”

In a post on X, United Nations special coordinator for Lebanon Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert urged “all parties in Lebanon” to “prioritize, in words and actions, the need to shield the country and its people from unfolding regional developments.”