Hezbollah Leader Threatens Cyprus

Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah has warned that if Cyprus continues to provide its ports and airfields to Israel for military exercises, Hezbollah may consider the country a full participant in the conflict.

Nasrallah made these statements during a televised address at a memorial service for Taleb Abdullah, a senior field commander of the group who was killed on June 11 in an Israeli strike. According to Nasrallah, in the event of a full-scale conflict with Israel, Hezbollah's arsenal would enable it to target any part of Israeli territory as well as targets in the Mediterranean Sea, including Cyprus.

“The enemy knows that we have prepared for the worst and that there will be no safe place to escape our missiles,” media outlets quoted the Hezbollah leader as saying.

According to Cyprus Mail, the mention of Cypriot airports referred to RAF Akrotiri Royal Air Force base, which supports ongoing operations in the region, including Israel, as well as the support of Sovereign Base Areas (SBA) in Cyprus.

“Opening Cypriot airports and bases to the Israeli enemy targeting Lebanon would mean that the Cypriot government is part of the war, and resistance will treat it as part of the war,” the Hezbollah leader's statement said.

The Lebanese politician's statement has already been responded to by the President of the Republic of Cyprus, Nicos Christodoulides, who stated that the country “still does not participate in any military conflicts and positions itself rather as part of the solution than the problem.”

Speaking to journalists at the graduation ceremony of the University of Cyprus, Nicos Christodoulides emphasized Cyprus's role as a mediator in humanitarian activities “recognized worldwide, especially in the Arab world.”

The Cypriot leader also acknowledged that Hassan Nasrallah's statements “cause concern,” but refuted any claims suggesting Cyprus's involvement in military operations.