Although it was unclear whether Hezbollah chief Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah would attend, preparations for the massive rally on Friday were under way amid very tight security. Nasrallah is regarded by Israel as a top enemy.

Nasrallah announced the rally earlier this week in a televised speech. Hezbollah press officer Hussein Rahal said the rally was being prepared in an open site inside Beirut's southern suburbs.

Nasrallah has not been seen in public since hostilities broke out after Hezbollah's capture of two Israeli soldiers on July 12. But the Hezbollah chief has made several appearances in interviews on Arab satellite television channels.

'We are preparing for the big day, the celebration for the big victory against the American and Zionist plots in Lebanon,' said Alia Zeineddine, a Hezbollah follower.

Pictures of Nasrallah were erected all over Beirut's southern suburbs, a Hezbollah hotbed, with posters proclaiming a 'divine victory' covered the roads leading to Beirut international airport.

The celebration was going ahead in a district that suffered massive damage from daily Israeli raids. Hezbollah says around 15,000 apartment buildings were destroyed.

It offered 12,000 dollars for each each damaged apartment to enable the people to rent a house for one year and buy furniture.

Hezbollah and Israeli troops engaged in fierce fighting for 33 days until a UN-brokered ceasefire was implemented on August 14. More than 1,000 Lebanese, mostly civilians, were killed and 3,000 wounded. ( DPA)