Beirut - On the first anniversary of the release of the longest held Lebanese prisoner from an Israeli jail, the leader of Lebanon's Hezbollah said it was his group's responsibility to seek the release of other prisoners in Israel. Though in opposition, Hezbollah exercises considerable power in the nation and has openly clashed with other leading parties. Its stance against Israel had led to outright war with Lebanon's southern neighbour in the past, most recently in 2006.
"An open war still awaits us. There are thousands of Palestinian, Jordanian and Syrian captives in the Israeli prisons, and there are dozens of Lebanese who may not even be still alive," Hezbollah Secretary General Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah said during a ceremony Friday.
"We are responsible for any missing Lebanese or Palestinian, who were snatched from Lebanese territories by the enemy (Israel)," Nasrallah added.
Israel launched a 33-day war against Lebanon in 2006, during which, 1,200 Lebnese were killed, mostly civilians, after Hezbollah snatched two of its soldiers in a cross-border attack in southern Lebanon.
Hezbollah has since, refused to disarm despite UN resolution 1701, which calls for all militias in Lebanon to turn in their weapons. Hezbollah argues that its arsenal is needed to defend the country against Israel.
"The world respects the excuses of a racist state like Israel, but the world doesn't respect the Arab world, who leave their elderly, their youth and even their women in the Israeli prisons," Nasrallah said.
