Sheikh Qassem: Reconstruction is not a favor from anyone, and we will not accept blackmail under this pretext.
Qassem: Lebanon cannot move forward under US guardianship, and the US must respect the Lebanese people’s will for independence and non-interference in its affairs.
Sheikh Qassem: They say they are linking reconstruction to disarmament, we say we are the ones linking weapons to reconstruction.
Sheikh Qassem: Moving to the second phase requires implementing the first phase, which includes the withdrawal of “Israel,” an end to its aggression, and the actual start of reconstruction.
Sheikh Qassem: Hezbollah has fulfilled its responsibilities; let “Israel” fulfill its own, and let the Lebanese state fulfill its own.
Qassem: We will not discuss the details of the defensive strategy in the media, nor will we preempt the principles that will be agreed upon once we sit at the dialogue table.
Sheikh Qassem: Let “Israel” withdraw and stop its aggressions, including its air violations, as an important step toward engaging in discussions on the defensive strategy.
Sheikh Qassem: When we are invited to dialogue, we will be ready, but not under the pressure of occupation.
Sheikh Qassem: There was an exchange of messages with the President of the Republic regarding the implementation of the agreement south of the Litani, and the messages were positive and will remain so.
Sheikh Qassem: The second principle stipulates that any dialogue serves to leverage the strength of the resistance and its weapons in any defensive strategy.
Columbia University students protest: 'Hands of all the pro-Palestinian protesters'
Columbia University witnessed two protests on Friday, March 14, demanding the release of student activist Mahmoud Khalil. The first was a pro-Palestine rally outside the university’s main gates, followed by a protest led by the Student Workers of Columbia in support of Khalil and Grant Miner, President of UAW Local 2710, whom the union said was expelled for participating in pro-Palestine campus protests. Trump confirmed on Truth Social that Khalil’s arrest was “the first of many to come.” Columbia was a focal point of the Gaza Solidarity Encampments, which spread across US campuses in protest of "Israel’s" war on Gaza. Protesters demanded that their universities' endowments divest from Israeli-linked investments and called for an end to US military aid to "Israel."