ByJAMES GENN

Hezbollah "categorically rejects direct negotiations" with Israel, the terror organization's Secretary-General Naim Qassem said on Monday.

"It is the responsibility of the Lebanese government to stop direct negotiations with the Israeli enemy and return to indirect negotiations," Hezbollah-affiliated Al Mayadeen cited him as saying.

Direct negotiations and their outcomes "are as if they do not exist as far as we are concerned, and they do not concern us, neither closely nor distantly," he said.

Israel has "reached a dead end," and Hezbollah's "resistance is ongoing, strong, and cannot be defeated," he added.

Meanwhile, the Lebanese government cannot continue to govern while "it squanders Lebanon's rights and cedes land," the terror leader said.

A protester holds a picture of Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem during a demonstration in Riad Al Solh Square in Beirut, Lebanon, on April 11, 2026.
A protester holds a picture of Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem during a demonstration in Riad Al Solh Square in Beirut, Lebanon, on April 11, 2026. (credit: Manon Roca/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images)

He also accused the government of having decided to work "side by side with the Israeli enemy against its own people."

Israel will "not remain on a single inch of our occupied land, and our people will return to their lands up to the last inch of our borders," he continued.

The terror group's capabilities are not measured in months and years, and are built on the "triad of faith, will, and capability," he said.

The Lebanese government must "annul their March 2 decision that criminalizes Hezbollah and its people, in order to enable the pursuit of an internal dialogue that places Lebanon's interest above all considerations," he added.

"We will not return to the pre-March 2 era, and we will respond to Israeli aggression and confront it," he stated.

"No matter how much Israel threatens, we will not retreat, nor bow, nor be defeated," he insisted.

Qassem: 'Just as we resisted together, we will rebuild together'

Qassem also discussed cooperating with other Shi'ite movements within Lebanon, including the Amal Movement.

"Just as we resisted together, we will rebuild together," he said.

Hezbollah will stand with all the "honorable parties" as if they were "one hand," he added.

"We will be one hand with Amal, the national forces, and figures from various components and sects, and we will not squander the blood of the martyrs," he concluded.