"You (Israel) killed Haj Mugniyeh outside the natural battleground. ... If you want this kind of open war, and let the whole world hear, let it be an open war," Nasrallah said.
The threat by Nasrallah of an open war against Israel prompted fear inside Lebanon of a future of yet more instability. In his speech on Thursday at the funeral of the Mugniyeh, Nasrallah blamed Israel and promised he would avenge his killing.
Just like the assassinations that took place in Lebanon , no one knows for sure who actually killed Mugniyeh.
Reports from Beirut yesterday talked about the formation of an investigation committee of Iranian, Syrian and Hezbollah members to investigate the murder. The same reports also said that Iran is really angry with Syria for allowing such a murder to take place next to the Iranian and Syrian intelligence in Damascus.
According to another report from Beirut Syria declared today that the preliminary investigation points to the involvement of Syrian and ‘other’ agents . All fingers seem to point at Palestinians living in Syria as the ‘other’ .
Also , according to unconfirmed reports from Damascus , 2 bodyguards of Khaled Meshaal, the Damascus-based leader of the Palestinian militant movement Hamas, are being questioned about Mugniyeh's assassination. The same reports indicated that Meshaal had met with Mugniyeh at the Iranian embassy in Damascus just hours prior to the latter's death.
Israel has denied any links to the car bomb attack that killed Muganiyeh on Tuesday in the Syrian capital Damascus, but the threat prompted Israel to go on high alert. All Israeli embassies and Jewish institutions around the world were advised to be on alert. Israeli troops were also told to watch for provocations along the border with Lebanon and in the Palestinian territories.
"The threat resonates fear that in the next period Lebanon and the Middle East region will witness a new war," said political analyst Kamel Wazne.
Describing "Lebanon's political arena" as "angry, divided and chaotic," Wazne doubted Hezbollah would pursue an all-out confrontation with Lebanon's powerful neighbor to the south.
The movement might resort to "security revenge," he said, predicting that the area will witness "a war of assassinations."
According to a retired Lebanese army general, who spoke on condition of anonymity, "Hezbollah certainly has the capability to retaliate abroad."
Intelligence reports have accused the long-sought Mugniyeh of being behind the 1992 bombing of the Israeli embassy in Argentina, in which 29 people were killed, as well as the 1994 bombing of the Israelite Mutual Association building in Buenos Aires, in which 85 died.
Reports indicated at the time that these attacks were carried out to avenge the killing of former Hezbollah secretary general Abbas Musawi, who died in an Israeli helicopter raid in southern Lebanon on February 16, 1992.
"Clearly Nasrallah indicated that the conflict between Hezbollah and Israel is far from over," the military general said. "And while Katyusha rockets might no longer be used (by Hezbollah) to pound northern (Israel) from south Lebanon, the war might move behind the borders, and this can be dangerous for us here in Lebanon."
The general added that Israel could use an attack on its interests to put pressure on Lebanon.
"Israel knows the political situation in Lebanon is tense between the opposition (led by Hezbollah) and (the Western-backed) anti- Syrian majority, so if any Israeli interest was hit outside, Israel will use this as an excuse to strike inside Lebanon and escalate the situation between Hezbollah and the majority who have accused Nasrallah of always taking the country to war," he said.
During the 2006 war between Hezbollah and Israel, the Lebanese parliamentary majority criticized Hezbollah for taking the country to war by abducting two Israeli soldiers in a cross-border attack.
Some reports indicated at the time that Mugniyeh was the mastermind of the kidnapping.
At the time, Democratic Gathering leader MP Walid Jumblatt angrily said "Nasrallah cannot decide alone to take a whole nation to war to serve the interests of his allies Iran and Syria."
Prime minister Fouad Siniora reacted with outrage to Nasrallah’s threats of an open war by saying” An open war is not of the interest of Lebanon , Hezbollah or the Arabic and Islamic world. We have witnessed such open wars in the past and we know the consequences . We cannot have the whole world as a battle field . Nasrallah should know better and should know the consequences of such statements “
Observers in Lebanon believe that no matter who actually was behind the assassination, and no matter who retaliates against who , Lebanon is the country that stands to be the biggest loser and suffer the most in terms of destabilization. The war of 2006 between Israel and Hezbollah is a solid proof. In that war Lebanon was devastated , over 1200 Lebanese people, mostly civilians were killed, over 120, 000 houses were destroyed , over 1 million people mostly Shiites were made homeless , the bridges of Lebanon were all destroyed and the economy was devastated . But , despite all this devastation , Nasrallah declared victory and at the same time he has been hiding ever since for fear of being assassinated by Israel . It is ok for him to hide , but where will Lebanon and the Lebanese people hide if he carries out his threats?
Top picture: Southern Beirut suburb at the end of the 2006 war. This picture should be a constant reminder that wars only bring destruction and misery and therefore leaders should be careful before making any threats. In the end no matter how the threats are carried out Lebanon stands to lose the most
Tags: Hezbollah, Iran, Israel, Lebanese, Moughniyeh, Nasrallah, Palestinians, Syria
