Prime Minister Netanyahu, Defense Minister Katz, and IDF Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen. Zamir held a joint consultation Monday evening and declared there is no withdrawal on the agenda, according to a statement. Netanyahu said he insists Israel will remain in the southern Lebanon security zone and that the IDF has freedom of action. The statement appeared to counter reports of an operational slowdown.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Defense Minister Israel Katz, and IDF Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen. Eyal Zamir held a late-evening consultation Monday and issued a joint clarification: there is no withdrawal from the southern Lebanon security zone on the agenda. According to a statement reported by i24NEWS, Netanyahu said he insists that Israel will remain in the buffer zone and that the IDF maintains full freedom of action. The clarification follows a day of conflicting signals: earlier Monday, reports citing unnamed sources claimed the IDF had halted strikes in southern Lebanon for 48 hours and canceled infrastructure demolitions. As The Zioneer reported at 20:32 and 23:12 Monday, Netanyahu had already issued a denial, and a rare joint statement from the three top officials was released late in the evening. An Army Radio report quoted by N13, however, said that—public statements notwithstanding—no actual change in operating restrictions had occurred as far as was known. The repeated denials underscore the sensitivity of the issue amid ongoing negotiations involving Iran and the U.S., with Tehran reportedly linking the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz to an Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon. Netanyahu has consistently rejected that condition over the past week. It remains unclear whether the consultation produced any new operational directives beyond the public declaration.
7 developments
- StrongSenior official: IDF will stay in Lebanon security zone to protect north, destroy terror infrastructure
- StrongKatz: IDF will stay in Lebanon, Syria, Gaza security zones indefinitely, rejects withdrawal pressure
- StrongNetanyahu: IDF to stay in southern Lebanon as long as needed; 300 Hezbollah targets struck in two days
- StrongPM, defense minister clarify fire orders for Yellow Line in southern Lebanon
Source and signal
- Internal intake