Hezbollah Leader Says 'Parties' Seek To Drag Lebanon Into Civil War

Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah on Wednesday accused certain parties of seeking to drag Lebanon into a civil war.

"We will not go where the enemy wants (to a civil war)," Nasrallah said in his first comment on clashes that took place in the Khaldeh area, south of the capital Beirut, on Sunday following the killing of a Hezbollah official.

Nasrallah, however, did not name these parties.

The clashes between members of the Shia group and Sunni tribesmen erupted after Hezbollah members were ambushed during the funeral of Ali Shibli, one of the party's leaders. Shibli was killed on July 31 on the grounds of revenge.

Sunni tribesmen accuse Shibli of killing one of their relatives a year ago following a dispute.

Nasrallah said his party does not want to "waste" blood, saying he is aware of those "who seek to bring in weapons to fight us."

He cited Saudi Arabia's detention of former Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri as an attempt by the oil-rich country to "ignite a civil war" in Lebanon.

There was no comment from Saudi Arabia on Nasrallah's claims.

In late 2017, Lebanon officially accused Saudi Arabia of detaining Hariri, despite Riyadh's denials. Lebanese President Michel Aoun at the time called Hariri's detention a "hostile act."

*Writing by Ibrahim Mukhtar in Ankara -