Hezbollah Declares 'Open War' on Israel

Lebanon's Hezbollah opposition chief declared "open war" on Israel on Thursday while hundreds of thousands of government supporters filled central Beirut to remember slain ex-premier Rafiq Hariri.

"Zionists, if you want this kind of open war, then let the whole world listen: Let this war be open," Hassan Nasrallah said at the funeral of top Hezbollah commander Imad Mughnieh, killed in Damascus on Tuesday by a car bombing blamed on Israel.

"The blood of Imad Mughnieh will contribute to the disappearance of the Jewish state," said Nasrallah, whose fighters claimed victory in the devastating July-August 2006 war against Israel.

"You killed him outside our natural battleground. Our battleground with you is on Lebanese territory and you have overstepped the border."