The Secretary General of the Lebanese Shiite movement Hezbollah, Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah, said Thursday he will "resort to all diplomatic and political means" to reach an agreement with Cairo to free 26 convicted Hezbollah cell members, DPA reported.
Egypt's Supreme Court for State Security on Wednesday found all of the men guilty of plotting attacks against ships in the Suez Canal and tourist sites, along with other charges.
Nasrallah described the sentences as "unjust and political rulings" in an interview to be broadcast Thursday on the Kuwaiti RAI television.
"Since the first day [our members] were detained, I said that those arrested are honorable fighters," said Nasrallah, adding that their only charge is wanting to support Palestinians residing in the Gaza Strip.
He said the 26 men should thus view their sentences as an honor.
"Such a thing only proves their credibility and commitment to back the Palestinian people," he said.
Relations between Hezbollah and Egypt soured during the Israeli- Hamas war of December 2008-January 2009.
At the time, Nasrallah had called on all Egyptian army officers to resign during a speech to protest Egypt's decision to close the border with Gaza.
Egypt considered the speech a call for a coup d'etat.
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