Former secretary general of the Lebanese Shiite group Hezbollah Sheikh Sobhi Tfaili criticized the participation of Hezbollah militants in the Syrian conflict, saying those who are killed in Syria will go to Hell and are not considered martyrs, reports Al Arabiya.
During a televised interview this week, Tfaili confirmed that Hezbollah is fighting alongside the Assad regime in Syria.
"Hezbollah members who kill children, terrorize people and destroy houses in Syria will not be martyrs and will end up in Hell", he said.
Tfaili added that Shiites in Syria do not need anyone to stand up for them.
"The Shiites in Syria do not need anyone to defend them. We are the ones who caused them trouble. Sayyidah Zaynab's shrine does not need protection because she is also loved by the Sunni sect", he said, in reference to reports that Shiite militants were deployed around the shrine to defend it.
He added that Hezbollah militants in Syria were only present to defend the Assad regime and its criminality.
In October 2012, Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah acknowledged that party members had fought Syrian Mujahideen but said they were acting as "individuals" and not under the party's direction.
Earlier in February, a Hezbollah official said clashes on the Syrian border left killed and wounded from both sides.
Following the clashes, the Syrian National Council warned that this posed a threat to ties between neighbors Syria and Lebanon and the Free Syrian Army issued an ultimatum to Hezbollah to cease its operations in Syria or face attacks on its installations in Lebanon.
Media reports later emerged that the FSA targeted a Hezbollah base in Hermel, which is near the border with Syria but they were never confirmed. Hermel's town of al-Qasr has been rumored to be a stronghold for Hezbollah militants involved in the fighting in Syria.
Tfaili also criticized the Lebanese army for not forbidding Lebanese people in Hermel from going to Syria to fight.
"Why doesn't the Lebanese army prevent Lebanese in Hermel from going to Syria to fight? Why doesn't it protect citizens in Akkar towns bordering (Syria)?", he asked.
Tfaili also held Hezbollah responsible for every Shiite person killed in Syria and warned that the "Israeli" enemy was the first beneficiary from the struggle there.
Department of Monitoring
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