Israelis Vow to Stay in South Lebanon

For now, Israeli may have bowed to a ceasefire in Lebanon, but Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has no intention of withdrawing Israeli troops from the country. “We have achieved tremendous accomplishments, and we will not relinquish them,” he said in a Hebrew-language statement Sunday afternoon, reported The Times of Israel. “We will remain in the security zone in southern Lebanon for as long as necessary, in order to protect the dear residents of the north and all the citizens of Israel from Hezbollah attacks),” he added.

“As prime minister of Israel, I insist on this unequivocally, and nothing will change it,” Netanyahu added, alluding to his conflict with U.S. President Donald Trump over Israel’s military campaign in southern Lebanon as Washington looks to sign a comprehensive agreement to end hostilities with Tehran.Netanyahu’s comments were preceded by a similar statement from IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir, who said Sunday that the military’s objective in southern Lebanon remained “clear and unchanged—defending the northern communities and the citizens of Israel.”“We are directing all of our efforts to that end. The activity in the Ali Taher and Beaufort areas is also intended to serve this purpose,” he said during a visit to southern Lebanon Sunday, in remarks published by the army.

Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz said on Sunday that Israeli soldiers are free to act without restriction to eliminate threats in Lebanon, [reported Reuters. A Hezbollah official told Reuters the group was committed to the ceasefire announced on Friday night as long as Israel adheres to it, adding that Israeli forces do not have the right to freedom of movement in south Lebanon. The official said Hezbollah forces have not fired on Israeli troops since 6:30 p.m. (1530 GMT) Saturday.

Security sources told Reuters Israel had also launched no major strikes on Lebanon since the same time. That represents the longest spell without major strikes since the war in Lebanon between Hezbollah and Israel began on March 2.