Nasrallah's Test: Will Hezbollah retaliate for the assassination of Samir Kuntar

The big question disturbing Israel after the assassination of Samir Kuntar is whether Hezbollah will respond, and if so, how and on which front. The answer to this question does not solely depend on the Lebanese Shi'ite group, but depends mainly on what Hezbollah's masters in Tehran decide.

Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah has already said in the past that the group will retaliate to any attempted strike by Israel, and indeed, following the assassination of Jihad Mughniyeh in a Golan Heights attack attributed to Israel several months ago, Hezbollah ambushed the army in the Har Dov area and hit an army vehicle, killing two soldiers. Hezbollah also has tended to retaliate when attacked in strikes on Lebanese territory attributed to the Israel Air Force against weapons shipments intended for the organization. However, the organization has also been known to let alleged Israeli strikes slide without retaliation on more than one occasion, the JPost reported on Sunday.

This time as well, Hezbollah announced that Israel is responsible for the assassination of Kuntar. Israel is continuing its thunderous silence as it has since the beginning of the Syrian civil war some five years ago, even when the media attributes to it airstrikes and military activities in Syrian or Lebanese territory.

Source: MENA