Hezbollah chief warns against US attack on Iran

BEIRUT - The leader of Lebanon's Iran-aligned Hezbollah movement, Naim Qassem, said on Monday that his group was concerned about confronting Washington's threat against Iran, particularly any threat against Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

Tensions between Iran and the United States have grown following a severe crackdown on protests across Iran in which thousands were killed in the past few weeks, which President Donald Trump said could lead to a US response. Tehran said any attack on Khamenei would trigger a "holy war."

"Faced with aggression that does not distinguish between us... we are targeted by any potential aggression and determined to defend ourselves," Qassem said in a televised address.

"We are concerned with what is happening and targeted by potential aggression. We are determined to defend ourselves. We will choose in due course how to act, whether to intervene or not... but we are not neutral," Qassem added.

The Hezbollah leader said mediators had told the group the US and Israel were considering hitting it in case there was an attack on Iran, saying that a war on Iran could ignite the entire region this time.

Hezbollah was severely weakened in 2024 during cross-border fighting with Israel that Hezbollah said was in support of Palestinians in Gaza. Israel and Lebanon agreed to a US-brokered ceasefire in 2024, but both sides have traded accusations of violations.