[News] Sheikh Qassem: Lebanon must reject concessions to the enemy

[Anti-Imperialist News]

english.almayadeen.net
<https://english.almayadeen.net/news/politics/sheikh-qassem--lebanon-must-reject-concessions-to-the-enemy>
Sheikh Qassem: Lebanon must reject concessions to the enemy
Al Mayadeen English
August 28, 2026
------------------------------

Hezbollah Secretary-General Naim Qassem rejects Lebanon’s negotiations with
the Israeli occupation, opposes the Framework Agreement, and reaffirms
resistance.

   - [image: Sheikh Naim Qassem, the Secretary-General of Hezbollah, during
   a speech on August 28, 2026 (Screengrab)]
   <https://alpha-en-media.almayadeen.net/media/image/2026/8/28/4e5d2c5b-b5d1-497b-b1f4-ee10715c9fa1.jpg?width=1000>
   Sheikh Naim Qassem, the Secretary-General of Hezbollah, during a speech on
   August 28, 2026 (Screengrab)

Hezbollah Secretary-General Sheikh Naim Qassem rejected the Lebanese
authorities' decision to enter direct negotiations with the Israeli
occupation, arguing that the talks had failed to stop the war
<https://english.almayadeen.net/news/politics/israeli-airstrikes--artillery-shelling-escalate-across-south>
and amounted to concessions that yielded nothing for Lebanon.

Speaking at a ceremony marking the birth anniversary of Prophet Muhammad
(PBUH) in Beirut's southern suburb, Sheikh Qassem also addressed Islamic
unity, the Palestinian cause and the American-Israeli project seeking to
control and fragment the region.
On Islamic unity and support for Palestine

Islamic unity, according to Sheikh Qassem, requires turning toward the
nation's true enemy while overcoming internal divisions. Such unity should
also extend to national and humanitarian solidarity, he added.

Palestine remains the central cause around which Arabs and Muslims should
unite, the Hezbollah chief stressed, describing it as an Islamic, national,
Arab, and humanitarian cause rather than a sectarian one.

He urged Arab and Islamic states and their peoples not to remain spectators
as enemies enter the region
<https://english.almayadeen.net/news/politics/israeli-strikes--blasts-hit-south-lebanon-despite--ceasefire>
while their fellow peoples suffer.

The speech also recalled Imam Sayyed Musa Al-Sadr, who was kidnapped and
disappeared on August 31 along with his two companions. Sheikh Qassem
highlighted Al-Sadr's early warnings about the Zionist entity and his focus
on southern Lebanon, recalling his words: “Lebanon cannot smile while its
South is suffering and in pain.”

Tribute was also paid to the martyred Hezbollah Secretary-General Sayyed
Hassan Nasrallah, whom Sheikh Qassem said had repeatedly highlighted
Al-Sadr's qualities and championed Islamic unity. He pledged to continue
along the path of both figures.
Sheikh Qassem warns of US-Israeli plans for the region

A broader American-Israeli project aimed at controlling and fragmenting the
region was also a central theme of the speech. Iran and Resistance forces,
Sheikh Qassem maintained, are confronting this project
<https://english.almayadeen.net/news/politics/rezaei--strait-of-hormuz-tied-to-ending-regional-wars>
.

Washington, he argued, is laying the groundwork for “Greater Israel,”
taking advantage of its military capabilities and what he characterized as
prevailing submission in the region.

The sacrifices made in Palestine, Lebanon, Iran, Yemen, and Iraq have
halted the project, according to Sheikh Qassem, who insisted that the
resistance has not been defeated despite the scale of the losses.

“We have made great sacrifices, and we will not lose. Loss comes when we
surrender and hand everything over to them with our own hands, allowing
them to take everything,” he said.

Developments in Syria were cited as further evidence of the “Greater
Israel” project. Resistance forces, he declared, will remain in the field
and reject attempts to impose such projects on the region.
Rejecting Lebanon's negotiations with enemy

The Lebanese authorities came under sharp criticism
<https://english.almayadeen.net/news/politics/lebanon-must-declare-trilateral-framework-deal-dead--resista>
over their decision to abandon the October 27 Agreement and enter direct
negotiations with the Israeli occupation.

Rather than stopping the war, he argued, the negotiations have granted
legitimacy to the fighting without securing anything in return for Lebanon.

“The Lebanese authorities’ negotiations did not stop the war; rather, they
granted it legitimacy and amounted to a humiliating surrender to the enemy
without receiving anything in return,” he said.

Sheikh Qassem directly challenged Lebanese officials over their authority
<https://english.almayadeen.net/news/politics/aoun-heads-to-rome-as-unifil-future-in-lebanon-comes-into-fo>
to make concessions affecting the country's sovereignty, accusing them of
placing Lebanon's interests at risk to remain in power and satisfy the
United States, which he said is complicit with the Israeli occupation.

“Who authorized you to relinquish sovereignty?” Sheikh Qassem asked.

At the same time, he rejected claims that Hezbollah seeks war, pointing to
its acceptance of the October 27, 2024 Agreement and its commitment to the
deal.

The current situation, he argued, is not a mutual war but continued Israeli
aggression that periodically escalates and subsides. Sheikh Qassem
attributed the easing of the fighting to Iran and the memorandum of
understanding.
Sheikh Qassem opposes Framework Agreement

Implementation of the October 27, 2024 Agreement within the framework of UN
Security Council Resolution 1701 remains acceptable to Hezbollah, Sheikh
Qassem said, while any alternative arrangement is rejected.

“We are in a state of confrontation and will remain steadfast. We accept
the implementation of the 27 October 2024 Agreement under the framework of
Resolution 1701, and nothing else,” he said.

The Framework Agreement should be annulled, he declared, describing it as
illegitimate, unlawful and humiliating while arguing that it undermines
Lebanese sovereignty and fails to restore rights.

Negotiations, Sheikh Qassem added, cannot be presented as an alternative to
resistance while fighting continues.

“Negotiations are taking place under war and grant legitimacy to the war,”
he said.

Resistance, he maintained, has prevented the “Greater Israel” project from
reaching Beirut and stripping Lebanon of its strength. The Israeli
occupation, he added, also does not dare establish a settlement in southern
Lebanon or redraw borders beyond occupied territory because of the
resistance.

Concluding his speech, Sheikh Qassem reaffirmed that Hezbollah and its
supporters would remain steadfast, while pledging continued assistance,
reconstruction and restoration for communities affected by the war
<https://english.almayadeen.net/news/politics/south-lebanon-bids-newlywed-bride-farewell-amid-continued-io>
.

“We will remain proud and hold our heads high. We will not surrender, and
let them do whatever they want.”

*Read more: 'Israel' has killed nearly 9,000 Lebanese since 2023: Health
Ministry
<https://english.almayadeen.net/news/politics/-israel--has-killed-nearly-9-000-lebanese-since-2023--health>*
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