Hezbollah will not allow the arrests of any of its members if they are indicted by investigators into the 2005 killing of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, the group’s leader, Hassan Nasrallah, said Thursday. Hezbollah and Western diplomats say that the United Nations-backed tribunal is expected to indict members of the group, possibly by the end of the year.
“Whoever thinks that we will allow the arrest or the detention of any of our fighters is mistaken,” Mr. Nasrallah told supporters in the southern suburbs of Beirut. “Any hand that will touch any of them will be cut off.” Hezbollah has repeatedly denied any link to the killing and has called on Lebanon to repudiate the tribunal.
Dal NYT:
Hezbollah will not allow the arrests of any of its members if they are indicted by investigators into the 2005 killing of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, the group’s leader, Hassan Nasrallah, said Thursday. Hezbollah and Western diplomats say that the United Nations-backed tribunal is expected to indict members of the group, possibly by the end of the year.
“Whoever thinks that we will allow the arrest or the detention of any of our fighters is mistaken,” Mr. Nasrallah told supporters in the southern suburbs of Beirut. “Any hand that will touch any of them will be cut off.” Hezbollah has repeatedly denied any link to the killing and has called on Lebanon to repudiate the tribunal.