Hizbollah militants were on Monday digging in in the expectation of prolonged fight with Israel in southern Lebanon, and were in no mood to discuss conditions under which they might lay down their weapons.

“It is not only militants who are with Hizbollah. Now a lot of Lebanese, Christians and Muslims are convinced that it is necessary to have the resistance,” Nawar Sahili, a Hizbollah member of parliament said. In an interview, he reiterated that the group would only discuss details of any internationally sponsored package to end the crisis in the aftermath of an unconditional ceasefire.