Hezbollah boss Nasrallah warns U.S. on upping ante in Syria

WASHINGTON (JTA) — Hezbollah’s leader, Sheik Hassan Nasrallah, warned that American involvement in the Syria crisis could invite his group’s intervention.

“You won’t be able to bring down Damascus and you cannot bring down the regime militarily,” Nasrallah said Tuesday in a televised interview, according to The New York Times. “The battle will be long.”

Nasrallah’s speech came after President Obama reiterated a pledge that evidence showing Syrian government involvement in chemical weapons use would trigger a “game change” in the U.S. posture that could include military intervention.

Reports in recent days have said the Obama administration may soon arm rebels in the country.

Nasrallah, whose group is the most powerful in Lebanon, has said that Hezbollah’s involvement in Syria has been limited to protecting Lebanese Shiites in the country.

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