'Hello my enemies': Lebanese journalist on Israeli threats and his resolve to continue

By Heba Morad

A Lebanese journalist who survived an Israeli attack in southern Lebanon last month says he will not abandon his work and continue reporting on Israeli crimes despite threats to his life.

Ali Mortada, a war correspondent for Al-Mayadeen TV, in an interview with the Press TV website, opened up on his journalistic work amid the relentless Israeli bombings and recent threats issued against him by the Israeli military spokesperson.

Mortada, who has been fearlessly reporting on the Israeli aggression in southern Lebanon, has been able to provide a clearer picture of the Israeli regime’s aggression against the Arab country as well as the unyielding fight put up by Hezbollah resistance fighters.

Despite many of his colleagues killed during the ongoing war, he has refused to take a step back.

On October 25, an early morning Israeli airstrike killed three journalists when they were sleeping at a guesthouse in southeastern Lebanon, one of the deadliest attacks targeting Lebanese journalists since the Israeli regime launched its full-fledged war against Lebanon in early October.

Mortada and his other colleagues survived the attack, but camera operator Ghassan Najjar and broadcast technician Mohammed Rida of the Beirut-based Al-Mayadeen TV, and Wissam Qassim, a camera operator for Al-Manar TV, were martyred.

Mortada, who has gained a significant following on social media networks for his short videos that start with his signature greeting ‘Hello my enemies’, mourned his fallen colleagues and vowed to continue his journalistic work despite life-threatening dangers.

‘Hello my enemies’

Mortada’s catchphrase ‘Hello my enemies’ has deeply resonated with Western and Israeli audiences, contributing to the viral dissemination of his videos.

“I started the idea of ‘hello my enemies’ videos via social media because I wanted to deliver the truth to the Israeli audience, who believe the lies fabricated by their army and also think the resistance is only an armed group that can be easily annihilated,” Mortada told the Press TV website.

He said the idea gained traction amid the ongoing West-backed Israeli genocidal war on Gaza and Lebanon as lies and propaganda became common.

“I started delivering the message only in the English language in order to also show the Western audience facts about the battles and situation on the ground, and the videos were successful,” he noted, adding that his videos aim to illuminate realities on the ground and debunk Zionist lies.

His videos have also drawn attention from settlers in the occupied Palestinian territories, as he primarily intended to address them and make them aware of the illusionary world they live in.  

“The videos also became popular inside the Zionist entity, which prompted Israeli settlers to distribute my photo with a target sign on it, promising that I should be assassinated,” the Lebanese war correspondent stated.

“What the Israelis do not understand is that all these threats, killing attempts, and air strikes will not stop me from reporting on our just cause of resisting the occupation.”

After his videos became viral and created an impact, polls surfaced on social media platforms with Israeli regime authorities and intelligence agencies asking settlers how and when he should be killed.

The latest and more official threat came directly from the Israeli military’s Arabic spokesperson Avichay Adraee, who Mortada referred to as “a clown speaking on behalf of a murderous army”.

“Adraee is a clown, a nobody, and I never intended to address him or communicate with him directly, but due to his constant lies to the Israeli and Western audience, I deemed it necessary to deliver the true facts on what is going on in southern Lebanon,” he told the Press TV website.

He hastened to add that Adraee’s threats to him are serious and aimed at silencing him.

“I will not remain silent; I carry no missiles or war jets. What I have since the very beginning of this war is the word, the message, delivering facts as they are. They cannot hush me, they tell me you have no choice, you either remain silent or you die,” the journalist said, putting up a tough front.

“I declare that I will keep speaking loudly and if death is the result of speaking up; I welcome death wholeheartedly. There is no third option to me, it is either victory or martyrdom.”

Reflecting on the Israeli killing of his colleagues at al-Mayadeen as well as other fellow journalists in Lebanon in recent months, Mortada admitted to feeling anger and a drive for justice.

“I feel really angry, and I feel like I want to take revenge for their killing. The fact that I am carrying on with my work, with spreading the truth and showing the battle of injustice and tyranny versus justice, I believe I am already avenging their blood,” he remarked.

Resistance in good shape

Moratada emphasized that the Axis of Resistance continues to be in robust shape despite recent assassinations and despite the propaganda campaign aimed at undermining the resistance front.

“Contrary to the international and media propaganda and pressure campaign that says the resistance has been smashed, the resistance is in a very good shape and is doing well,” he noted.

According to Israeli media, Tel Aviv deployed more than 50,000 troops in its “ground invasion” of Lebanon in early October, but they have not been able to capture any villages in southern Lebanon and have instead suffered high casualties.

In a recent statement, Hezbollah also announced that it has destroyed several Israeli military vehicles since the “ground invasion” began, including 42 Merkava tanks, 2 hummers, 4 bulldozers, over a hundred soldiers killed and more than 900 injured.

“Based on facts on the ground that we see here in the south, including the missiles that hit Israeli illegal settlements on a daily basis, the battles fought at the borders, the Israeli incapability of occupying border villages, the burning of Merkava tanks in the different clash zones, the zero range combat in which resistance fighters have the upper hand, the steadfastness of the displaced people, the Lebanese community which has demonstrated a strong united society that cannot be pulled to pieces, the world will witness the triumph of Lebanon, an unprecedented victory that will allow us to see a new order in the region,” Mortada told the Press TV website.

He said the resistance has already debunked the bogus claims of it losing the ability to fight the Israeli occupation and losing its weapons arsenal by continuing to carry out sophisticated operations.

Describing the situation on the ground, Mortada said the raids and shelling continue unabated in the border region but the marauding regime forces have failed to gain a foothold on the Lebanese territory.

“Despite the assassinations of resistance leaders, Israel has failed in achieving any of its goals in its war on Lebanon. It had set a few goals, including destroying Hezbollah’s arsenal, creating a zone free of arms and resistance members beyond the Litani river, which is a crucial point,” he affirmed.

The facts on the ground, he added, challenge the Israeli propaganda of destroying Hezbollah and its infrastructure or realizing its achievements on the southern borders of Lebanon.

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