Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar told Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi that the joint US-Israel operation averted an immediate existential threat of the Iranian regime obtaining nuclear weapons. Sa'ar added that Hezbollah is the party violating Lebanese sovereignty and attacking Israel and its civilians, and said the Iranian proxy must be disarmed, according to a statement carried by Israel Hayom.
Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar held a phone conversation Tuesday morning with Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi, framing the call around nuclear nonproliferation and Lebanon. Sa'ar stated that the joint US-Israel 'operation' — a reference to reported US-Israeli action against Iran's nuclear program — prevented an immediate existential danger of the Iranian regime acquiring nuclear weapons. He asserted that Israel is determined never to allow the Iranian regime to obtain what he called 'the most dangerous weapon in the world.'
On the Lebanon front, Sa'ar told Motegi that Hezbollah is the party violating Lebanese sovereignty and attacking Israel and its civilians. He described Hezbollah as an Iranian proxy and a common threat to both Israel and Lebanon, and called for the organization's disarmament.
The call follows a series of Israeli and allied statements on the Iran nuclear and Hezbollah fronts. As The Zioneer reported Monday, National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir rejected the emerging US-Iran agreement and demanded the IDF continue demolitions and Hezbollah eliminations. Culture and Sport Minister Miki Zohar separately warned that Iran's demand for an Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon will not materialize. The conversation also comes amid reports of a shifting tone from Lebanese officials, with Lebanon's foreign minister labeling Hezbollah an 'unlawful military organization' and an 'Iranian arm' last week, as The Zioneer reported Thursday.
Sa'ar's remarks are a direct diplomatic statement by a senior Israeli minister following a reported joint military operation. They are sourced to a single report by Ariel Kahana (Israel Hayom) and are not independently corroborated at this hour.
2 developments
- DevelopingIsraeli FM Saar to Japanese counterpart: Iran must never obtain the world's most dangerous weapons
- StrongIran FM declares Israel and Hezbollah as counterparties to US deal; any Lebanon strike is breach
- DevelopingNetanyahu says Israel and US removed 'immediate' nuclear threat, 'saved state from annihilation'
- StrongIsrael's Foreign Ministry: Iran is lying, Hezbollah attacked, will not tolerate fire
Source and signal
- Internal intake