Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz are visiting southern Lebanon this evening, according to one report. The visit underscores ongoing Israeli military presence in the buffer zone established after the 2024 ceasefire.
This evening (Tue, 18:09 Jerusalem), Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz are on a joint visit to southern Lebanon, a report indicates — adding Katz's participation to the trip first reported earlier today. The visit was first reported as an unannounced trip by Netanyahu alone; subsequent thread versions confirmed Katz accompanied him and that military censorship on the visit had been lifted. By 16:08 Jerusalem, the Prime Minister's Office had released footage of the tour, and Netanyahu had addressed troops in the buffer zone, stating that Hezbollah retains roughly 8% of its pre-war rocket arsenal and that 9,000 operatives have been killed. He ordered soldiers not to hesitate to engage any identified threat and declared Israel will remain deployed in the zone as long as Hezbollah poses a threat — a position he has reiterated in prior statements, as The Zioneer reported on Jun 23 ("Netanyahu: Israeli forces are not leaving Lebanon" was published at 14:02 Jerusalem).
9 developments
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- DevelopingNetanyahu: Israeli forces are not leaving Lebanon
- StrongNetanyahu: IDF controls nearly 70% of Gaza Strip; vows no withdrawal from Lebanon buffer zone
- StrongNetanyahu: IDF to stay in southern Lebanon as long as needed; 300 Hezbollah targets struck in two days
Source and signal
- Internal intake