Naim Qassem Admits Hezbollah Cannot Break Israel’s Military Power

Hezbollah Secretary-General Naim Qassem admitted that the terror group cannot break Israel’s military power in a direct military confrontation.

Speaking at Hezbollah’s central Ashura council, Qassem said the organization cannot defeat Israel “military strength against military strength,” even as he tried to present Hezbollah’s power as coming from faith, determination and Iranian backing.

“If I compare the strength of the resistance with the strength of Israel, and say that with the strength of the resistance I want to defeat Israel, then my words are not correct,” Qassem said. “It is impossible, with the resistance’s military strength, for us to break Israel’s military strength.”

The statement was unusual for the leader of Hezbollah, which has long portrayed itself as the force capable of challenging Israel from Lebanon. Qassem did not present the remarks as surrender. Instead, he said Hezbollah relies on other sources of strength beyond conventional military power, including faith, willpower, capability and reliance on Iran.

In the same speech, Qassem praised Iran and described it as part of the wider strength behind Hezbollah’s position. He also said Hezbollah waited 15 months before moving from what he called “patience in the field” to “fighting in the field” on March 2, presenting the decision as a deliberate step rather than a reaction forced by Israel.

The response from Israel came quickly. IDF Arabic-language spokesman Avichay Adraee mocked Qassem’s statement and said the Hezbollah leader had finally said something true.

“Naim Qassem, it seems this may be the first time you have said something true — unlike your usual habit,” Adraee wrote on X. “Yes, Israel does not break.”

Adraee said Israel had warned Hezbollah repeatedly about the cost of confronting it. He pointed to Israel’s will, combat doctrine, national unity and military power, saying those qualities made the country “a rock on which all your illusions shatter.”

He then accused Hezbollah of knowingly following Iran into the confrontation despite understanding Israel’s capabilities.

“You knew very well what military, intelligence and technological power you were facing, and nevertheless, under outside orders from Iran, you threw yourselves into this abyss,” Adraee wrote.

Adraee also invoked former Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, who famously said “Had I known” after the Second Lebanon War, referring to the scale of Israel’s response. This time, Adraee said, Hezbollah cannot claim surprise.

“Today you do not have the privilege of saying, ‘Had we known,’ because you knew,” he wrote.

The IDF spokesman closed by saying Hezbollah’s long-running “spider web” theory had collapsed. The phrase was used by Nasrallah to portray Israeli society as fragile despite Israel’s military strength.

Adraee said Hezbollah’s claims had now run into reality on the ground. “Israel is strong, stable, and continues to dismantle your illusions,” he wrote.