Nasrallah: Hezbollah Needs Help to Defeat Israel

JERUSALEM, Israel -- Hezbollah chief Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah said his group is not capable of wiping Israel off the map "all by itself."

"We are not claiming that Hezbollah is capable of launching a war. I am not talking about the principle. You asked about capabilities," Nasrallah told his interviewer on Syria News television, aired earlier this month and translated by the Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI).

"We are not claiming that we are capable of this. Indeed, we are incapable of this," he clarified. "Are we supposed to lie to our people and ourselves saying that we are capable of launching a war against Israel, wiping it off the map and liberating Palestine [sic]? Hezbollah is incapable of doing this all by itself. We have never made such claims. We are realistic," Nasrallah said.

"It is true that I spoke about [Hezbollah conquering] the Galilee," he continued, saying he was "speaking hypothetically."

"I did not take an oath. I only said that this could happen…When I say "war," I mean Israeli aggression against Lebanon," the terror chief explained.

"Yes, [conquering] the Galilee is within the capabilities of the Lebanese resistance. But as for going all the way to Tel Aviv and Eilat -- well, we do not have that capability. No resistance faction can be responsible for a war of such magnitude by itself. Such a war would cause great damage throughout the region. A decision like this should be taken by partners, who are capable of accomplishing the goal behind declaring such a war," he said.

Nasrallah rarely makes an appearance in public in Lebanon. Hezbollah is considered Iran's proxy, which continually threatens to wipe Israel off the map.