http://www.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/meast/09/22/lebanon.rally.reut/index.html

"BEIRUT, Lebanon (Reuters) -- Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah has appeared in public for the first time since a 34-day war with Israel despite Israeli threats to kill him.

Nasrallah waved at supporters at a giant rally in Beirut that he called to celebrate Hizbollah's "divine victory" in the war. He was expected to address the crowd of several hundred thousand later.

Organizers expect hundreds of thousands of people from across the country to attend the defiant evening rally in the Muslim Shiite southern suburbs, which were heavily bombed during the 34-day war.

Such a large turnout in a country of just four million would also mark a challenge to the coalition government of Prime Minister Fouad Siniora, which includes Hezbollah but is mostly opposed to the group's Syrian and Iranian alliances.

A Lebanese political source said Nasrallah would not let the risk of possible Israeli attack stop him from attending the rally.

"God was generous to us and granted us this victory against our enemy. He was generous to us and gave us Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah so we come here to celebrate with him," Hussein Kaddouh, 29, from the southern village of Yater, told Reuters.

"We are willing to respond to Sayyed Nasrallah's call with our blood, children and everything that we own."

.....

"Hezbollah has declared it won the war which killed nearly 1,200 people in Lebanon, mostly civilians, and 157 Israelis.

"I call on you all to participate in a victory rally, your victory ... in the southern suburb, the suburb of honor, glory, faith, steadfastness and victory for the whole country," Nasrallah said on Al-Manar."

.....

"Under an August truce which ended the fighting, United Nations reinforcements and Lebanese army forces are deploying in the south to monitor the cease-fire and try to assert the authority of the Beirut government.

But Nasrallah has said his fighters remain on the border with Israel and Hezbollah has dismissed demands that it disarm."