Saudi Arabia asks Israel to strike Lebanon, Nasrallah says

The head of the powerful Hezbollah group on Friday accused Saudi Arabia of asking his archfoe Israel to launch strikes on Lebanon.

"The most dangerous thing is inciting Israel to strike Lebanon," Hassan Nasrallah said in a televised address. "I'm talking about information that Saudi Arabia has asked Israel to strike Lebanon."

Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah said on Friday Saudi Arabia had declared war on Lebanon and Hezbollah, and said Lebanese Prime Minister Saad al-Hariri, who resigned in a speech from Riyadh on Saturday, was being detained in Saudi.

Nasrallah said Hariri's resignation was an "unprecedented Saudi intervention" in Lebanese politics and called for Hariri to return to Lebanon. He said Lebanon's government was still legitimate and had not resigned.
Hezbollah leader says war with Israel is unlikely amid the crisis facing his country following the resignation of its prime minister in an announcement made from Saudi Arabia.

Nasrallah said Friday that his powerful militant group is watching carefully for any Israeli attempts to use the crisis to begin hostilities against Lebanon. Nasrallah says Israel is cautious and unlikely to make such a move.

Nasrallah is calming an apparently jittery population following Saudi Arabia's escalation against Hezbollah's patron Iran. The resignation of Prime Minister Saad Hariri from Saudi Arabia last week was seen as a move by Riyadh to take its rivalry with Iran to the tiny Lebanon.

Many fear the escalation will pave the way for Israel to strike against Hezbollah, against which Israel has fought a number of wars. Nasrallah warned Israel against "miscalculation" or "taking advantage of the situation."

He said Israel should not think "we are troubled. No, absolutely not."

"Today we are more confident and feeling stronger in the face of any threat," said Nasrallah.