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Source: http://www.defensenews.com/article/20140525/DEFREG04/305250019/Hezbollah-Chief-Goads-Israel-US-West
Hizbullah Chief Goads Israel, U.S.
(Defense News) Barbara Opall-Rome - Speaking on May 25 in the southern Lebanese Hizbullah stronghold of Bint Jebail, Secretary General Hassan Nasrallah vowed to retain his organization's vast military arsenal in defense of Lebanon, Arabism and Islam. Nasrallah said the Iranian-backed organization is "improving its power" to confront Israel as well as American and Western governments seeking to topple Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad. Israeli intelligence estimates some 5,000 Hizbullah fighters are battling on behalf of Assad. In a recent interview, a senior officer with command responsibility along Israel's northern border said Hizbullah is paying a high price in Lebanon in terms of lost domestic support and lost manpower as a result of its support of the Assad regime. "They're being blamed for bringing the violence and carnage of global Jihad into Lebanon," the officer said.