Lebanon's Defense Minister Elias Bou Saab on Wednesday threatened to strike targets in Israel if it attacks Lebanese territory, Hezbollah's Al Manar satellite network reported.
"If Israel bombards our airport, we will bombard its airport; if it strikes our oil facilities, we will strike its oil facilities," Saab reportedly said while touring his country's southern region that borders Israel.
Saab also ruled out the possibility of Israeli starting a war with Lebanon, claiming that the Lebanese military has the deterrence power to prevent it.
In February, U.S. Ambassador to Lebanon Elizabeth Richard expressed concerns over Hezbollah's growing role in the country's new cabinet, adding that the Iran-backed organization continues to make its own "national security decisions" that "endanger the rest of the country."
The U.S. views Hezbollah as a terrorist group, but is a strong supporter of Lebanon's national army, supplying it with arms worth hundreds of millions of dollars in recent years. In mid-February, the American Embassy in Lebanon said the U.S. had delivered laser-guided rockets valued at more than $16 million to the Lebanese army.
Richard said last year alone, the United States provided more than $825 million in assistance, an increase from the year before.
On Monday, Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah said that if Israel wants to wage a war against his terrorist organization, which is based in southern Lebanon, it will need to launch a ground invasion that it currently isn't prepared for.
"I am leaning toward the conclusion that Israel is unlikely to carry out a war on Lebanon. I personally think that it is unlikely they will do so because… its home front is not prepared," Nasrallah said in a televised speech.
