Hizbullah's Deputy Director Sheikh Naeem Kassem said Sunday that the Israeli Home Front exercise is a preparation for war and part of "Israel's aggressive character."

Kassem said the exercise had three purposes: first, boosting the morale of the Israeli people, which has been low since the Second Lebanon War; secondly, convincing the Israelis that the army has overcome the failure and is ready and has drawn all the lessons from the war; and thirdly, he explained, "it is part of the preparations for war, because Israel is always on a war footing."