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BEIRUT: Powerful Russian anti-ship missiles acquired by Hezbollah give it the means to deliver on its leader’s veiled threat against US warships and underline the grave risks of any regional war, sources familiar with the group’s arsenal say. Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah warned Washington last week his group had something in store for the US vessels deployed to the region.
Two sources in Lebanon familiar with the Iran-backed group’s arsenal say he was referring to Hezbollah’s enhanced anti-ship missile capabilities, including the Russian-made Yakhont missile with a range of 300 km.Media reports and analysts have for years indicated that Hezbollah acquired Yakhont missiles in Syria after deploying there more than a decade ago to help President Bashar al-Assad fight a civil war. Hezbollah has never confirmed it.
Washington says its naval deployment – comprising two aircraft carriers and their supporting ships – aims to prevent the Hamas- Israel conflict from spreading by deterring Iran, which backs groups including Hamas and Hezbollah. Hezbollah perceives the US warships as a direct threat because of their ability to hit the group.
Nasrallah said in a speech on Friday that the US warships in the Mediterranean “do not scare us”. “We have prepared for the fleets with which you threaten us,” he said. The White House said after Nasrallah’s speech that Hezbollah must not exploit the Hamas-Israel war.
One of the sources said Hezbollah’s anti-ship capabilities had developed enormously since 2006, when the group first demonstrated it could strike a vessel at sea by hitting an Israeli warship in the Mediterranean during a war with Israel. The source added that use of this weapon by Hezbollah against hostile warships would indicate the conflict had escalated into a major regional war.
Two sources in Lebanon familiar with the Iran-backed group’s arsenal say he was referring to Hezbollah’s enhanced anti-ship missile capabilities, including the Russian-made Yakhont missile with a range of 300 km.Media reports and analysts have for years indicated that Hezbollah acquired Yakhont missiles in Syria after deploying there more than a decade ago to help President Bashar al-Assad fight a civil war. Hezbollah has never confirmed it.
Washington says its naval deployment – comprising two aircraft carriers and their supporting ships – aims to prevent the Hamas- Israel conflict from spreading by deterring Iran, which backs groups including Hamas and Hezbollah. Hezbollah perceives the US warships as a direct threat because of their ability to hit the group.
Nasrallah said in a speech on Friday that the US warships in the Mediterranean “do not scare us”. “We have prepared for the fleets with which you threaten us,” he said. The White House said after Nasrallah’s speech that Hezbollah must not exploit the Hamas-Israel war.
One of the sources said Hezbollah’s anti-ship capabilities had developed enormously since 2006, when the group first demonstrated it could strike a vessel at sea by hitting an Israeli warship in the Mediterranean during a war with Israel. The source added that use of this weapon by Hezbollah against hostile warships would indicate the conflict had escalated into a major regional war.
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