Beirut (AFP) - Lebanon's Shiite movement Hezbollah is fighting the Islamic State group in Iraq, its chief Hassan Nasrallah revealed for the first time Monday in a speech beamed to supporters.

"We may not have spoken about Iraq before, but we have a limited presence because of the sensitive phase that Iraq is going through," Nasrallah said, referring to ongoing clashes between Iraq's army, militias and Kurdish forces against the IS jihadists.

Hezbollah is already fighting in Syria, alongside President Bashar al-Assad's forces.

Nasrallah's speech comes two days after his leading Lebanese opponent, former prime minister Saad Hariri, called on Hezbollah to withdraw from Syria.

"I say to those who call on us to withdraw from Syria, let's go together to Syria," said Nasrallah.

"I say, come with us to Iraq, and to any place where we can fight this threat that is threatening our (Muslim) nation and our region," he added, referring to IS and the Al-Qaeda affiliated Al-Nusra Front.

Both Sunni jihadist movements control large swathes of Syria, while IS is also present in Libya, where on Monday it claimed the beheading of 21 Coptic Christian Egyptian hostages.

Nasrallah condemned the brutal killings as "an awful, heinous crime", while branding the Al-Nusra Front and IS as having "the same essence, ideology, culture and methodology".

"The only difference between them was over leadership, but they are essentially one and the same," said Nasrallah.

"All the takfiri (extremist Sunni) currents must be fought, without distinction."

- 'More crises, more confrontations' -

Nasrallah's speech comes just over a week after Hezbollah, the Syrian army and pro-regime militias launched a major offensive against rebels and their Al-Nusra Front allies in southern Syria.

Nasrallah meanwhile said it made no sense for unnamed Gulf countries -- in an apparent reference to Saudi Arabia and Qatar -- as well as Jordan to fight IS, while allegedly supporting the Al-Nusra Front.

Hezbollah, like Assad's regime, brands all those fighting Damascus as "terrorists". Neither recognises the presence of non-jihadist groups seeking Assad's ouster.

"How can some countries in the Gulf take part in the (US-led) international coalition against Daesh, while giving money and weapons to the Al-Nusra Front... How is that logical?" he said, using the pejorative Arabic acronym "Daesh" to refer to IS.

In August, a US-led coalition launched strikes against IS positions in Iraq. In September, the campaign was expanded to include targets in Syria.

Nasrallah went on to call on Gulf states that support the Syrian opposition to help pave the way for a political solution to a conflict that has claimed more than 210,000 lives since 2011.

"In Syria, the game is over," said Nasrallah, in reference to the ongoing fighting.

"The gates to a political solution should be opened," he said, "and the non-extremist opposition... must enter into a settlement with the regime, because the regime is ready for a settlement."

Nasrallah also warned that "the region is going in the direction of more crises, more confrontations, and new fronts are opening".

WSJ Live
Ukraine Cease-Fire: Battle for Debaltseve Continues

By Anton Zverev

VUHLEHIRSK, Ukraine (Reuters) - Pro-Russian rebels pounded encircled Ukrainian government forces on Monday and Kiev said it would not pull back heavy guns while a truce was being violated, leaving a European-brokered peace deal on the verge of collapse.

The European Union kept pressure on Russia and the rebels by announcing a new list of separatists and Russians targeted with sanctions, to which Moscow promised an "adequate" response.

The United States said it was "gravely concerned" by the fighting in and around the town of Debaltseve in eastern Ukraine after a ceasefire agreement that came into force on Sunday and said it was closely monitoring reports of a new column of Russian military equipment moving toward the region.

"These aggressive actions and statements by the Russia-backed separatists threaten the most recent ceasefire," U.S. State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said in a statement. "We call on Russia and the separatists it backs to halt all attacks immediately."

Fighting subsided in many parts of eastern Ukraine under a ceasefire deal reached last week in marathon talks involving the leaders of France, Germany, Russia and Ukraine.

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Members of the Ukrainian armed forces ride on a military vehicle near Debaltseve, eastern Ukraine Fe …

But the truce appears to have been stillborn in Debaltseve, where the most intensive fighting has taken place in recent weeks.

"The situation is fragile," said German Chancellor Angela Merkel, the driving force behind the deal reached on Thursday after all-night talks in the Belarussian capital Minsk.

"It was always clear that much remains to be done. And I have always said that there are no guarantees that what we are trying to do succeeds. It will be an extremely difficult path," she told reporters in Berlin.

Merkel, along with the leaders of France and Ukraine, expressed concern about continued fighting in Debaltseve and said observers from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) must have "free access" for their work in eastern Ukraine.

Rebels said soon after the ceasefire came into effect they had no intention of observing it at Debaltseve, where they have been advancing since January and now have a Ukrainian unit all but encircled.

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A local woman pushes her bicycle near a sign to the town of Vuhlehirsk, about 10 km (6 miles) to the …

Washington says the rebel operation around the town, which sits on a strategic railway hub, is being assisted by the Russian armed forces, which Moscow denies.

The U.S. State Department spokeswoman called on Russia and the separatists to engage with the OSCE to facilitate the cease fire.

The OSCE said on Sunday that the rebels had refused to allow its monitors to reach Debaltseve after the ceasefire took effect.

Reuters reporters near the front said Debaltseve was being relentlessly bombarded with artillery. At least six tanks as well as armoured personnel carriers and artillery could be seen in woods near Vuhlehirsk, 10 km (six miles) west of Debaltseve, which the rebels captured a week ago.

Military trucks headed along the main road in the direction of the town to regular bursts of shelling and the firing of Grad rockets and machine guns.

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Ukrainian servicemen ride on a tank near Debaltseve, eastern Ukraine February 16, 2015. Ukrainian ar …

"You can hear there is no ceasefire," said a rebel fighter with a black ski mask who gave his name as Scorpion, his nom de guerre, and blamed the fighting on Kiev's forces. "Debaltseve is our land. And we will take Debaltseve."

STALEMATE OVER WITHDRAWAL OF BIG GUNS

A rebel commander, Eduard Basurin, said Ukrainian troops had violated the ceasefire 27 times in the past 24 hours.

Kiev said its forces had been shelled more than 100 times in eastern Ukraine since the truce took effect, five of its servicemen had been killed and 25 wounded, and that it could not carry out an agreement to pull back big guns in such conditions.

"The pre-condition for withdrawal of heavy weapons is fulfilling Point One of the Minsk agreements - the ceasefire. One hundred and twelve attacks are not an indicator of a ceasefire," said a Kiev military spokesman, Andriy Lysenko.

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Ukrainian armed forces take their position near Debaltseve, eastern Ukraine February 16, 2015. Ukrai …

A rebel leader, Denis Pushilin, responded by saying his forces were "only ready for a mutual withdrawal of equipment."

In another complication likely to set back hopes of peace, he and another separatist leader said the rebels would pull out of the Minsk agreements if Kiev made any further moves to abandon Ukraine's neutral status -- also a red line for Moscow, which fears Ukraine might seek to join the NATO alliance.

The separatists offered the Ukrainian forces a safe corridor out of Debaltseve if they gave up their weapons but a military spokesman for Kiev, Vladislav Seleznyov, ruled this out.

"There are the Minsk agreements, according to which Debaltseve is ours. We will not leave," he said.

ONLY A GLIMMER OF HOPE

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Ukrainian government soldiers load boxes of food rations onto a vehicle, from a roadside supply near …

Fighting began in east Ukraine after the overthrow of a Moscow-backed president in Ukraine last February and Russia's annexation of the Crimea peninsula a month later.

The West says Putin, who has called parts of Ukraine "New Russia," has sent troops and weapons to back the rebels. Moscow denies this and accuses the West of waging a proxy war in Ukraine to seek "regime change" in Russia.

Hopes that Thursday's deal will end a conflict that has killed more than 5,000 people have been dampened by the collapse of an earlier truce when rebels advanced last month.

Western countries say they reserve the option of expanding economic sanctions on Moscow over the crisis, hoping a growing financial crisis in Russia will persuade Putin to use his influence with the rebels to stop the fighting. But some fear he wants the conflict to fester for years so that Kiev cannot control east Ukraine and Russia can retain influence there.

The EU's new list of 19 people and nine organisations hit by asset freezes and travel bans was dominated by Ukrainian separatists but also targeted popular Russian singer Iosif Kobzon, sometimes dubbed Russia's equivalent of Frank Sinatra, and two Russian deputy defence ministers.

"One thing is clear -- the decision, which will be followed by an adequate response, runs contrary to common sense and will not help efforts to find a solution to the inter-Ukrainian conflict," the Russian Foreign Ministry said.

(Additional reporting by Pavel Polityuk, Richard Balmforth and Alessandra Prentice in Kiev, Adrian Croft in Brussels, Tsvetelia Tsolova in Sofia, Michael Nienaber in Berlin and Andy Sullivan and David Brunnstrom in Washington; Writing by Timothy Heritage; Editing by Peter Graff. Giles Elgood and Chris Reese)

YAOUNDE, Cameroon (AP) — The Nigeria-based terror group Boko Haram on Monday threatened neighboring countries Niger and Chad, warning the fighters were prepared to carry out suicide bombings in the countries sending troops to help fight the extremists.

The warning came as leaders from Niger and other countries in the region gathered in Cameroon's capital to finalize plans for a joint offensive against the militants who have stepped up their attacks in recent weeks.

In a translation published by the SITE Intelligence Group, Boko Haram sharply criticized Niger for joining the effort and said the country was being dragged into a "swamp of darkness." Over the last 10 days, Boko Haram fighters have repeatedly struck the town of Diffa but not the capital.

"If you insist on continuing the aggression and the coalition with the government of Chad, then we give you glad tidings that the land of Niger is easier than the land of Nigeria and moving the war to the depth of your cities will be the first reaction toward any aggression that occurs after this statement," it said, according to SITE's transcript.

A multinational force to fight Boko Haram is expected to be formally launched in coming weeks. Chad, Cameroon, Niger and Benin initially pledged to help Nigeria. On Monday, Burundi and Central African Republic also agreed to contribute troops to fight the militant group.

The terror group has fought a five-year insurgency against Nigeria's government, leaving 10,000 people dead last year alone. The violence has forced some 157,000 people to seek refuge in Niger, while 40,000 others have gone to Cameroon and 17,000 are in Chad, the U.N. said. Almost 1 million Nigerians are internally displaced, according to the country's own statistics.

On Monday, leaders in Central Africa said that 10 member states had agreed to contribute most of the $100 million needed to combat Boko Haram. They did not state how much had been raised nor how much is remaining despite calling for the creation of an emergency fund to bridge the difference.

Nigeria Says Recaptures Northeast Towns From Boko Haram (video)

Larson reported from Dakar, Senegal.

ROME (AP) — Pope Francis' point man on clerical sex abuse said Monday the failure of the Catholic Church to punish bishops who covered up for pedophiles had seriously harmed its credibility and that it must now lead the way by "humbly making the commitment to accountability, transparency and zero tolerance."

Cardinal Sean O'Malley, archbishop of Boston, said canon lawyers and theologians were reviewing proposals to present to the pope on holding bishops and religious superiors accountable. The proposals were developed by Francis' commission of experts, which O'Malley chairs and includes two survivors of abuse.

O'Malley said the sex abuse scandal had "seriously diminished" the church's credibility in its core spheres of defending human rights, the unborn and immigrants.

"This has been caused in large part by the perception of a lack of accountability on the part of our leadership, causing many people to lose their trust in us and in the church," he said. "We cannot fail to do all that is possible to restore our credibility."

Victims of abuse have long denounced the Vatican for failing to sanction any bishop who covered up for an abuser.

O'Malley spoke at a conference at the Jesuit Pontifical Gregorian University, which is leading the church's efforts to educate a new generation of priests about preventing abuse and helping survivors through a specialized center for education and research. Francis publicly endorsed the initiative Monday.

O'Malley said the aim was also to educate the older generation of church leaders about the importance of accountability "and the consequences of not having accountability." He said the commission would be hosting seminars for Vatican officials, as well as new bishops passing through Rome for training, to teach them how to handle abuse cases when they arise, how to care for victims and prevent abuse from happening in the first place.

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