Speaking at a state memorial service at Jerusalem’s Mount Herzl Cemetery on Memorial Day for fallen soldiers and victims of terrorism, Katz said Israel would continue military operations in Lebanon if necessary to ensure security on the northern border.
“And as we gather here to honor our fallen, after weeks of decisive operations by IDF forces in southern Lebanon, our obligation to the people of the north remains clear and unequivocal – to ensure their safety,” Katz said.
“We have ordered the military to continue operating with full force”
He emphasized that Hezbollah decided to attack Israel “in the service of its Iranian masters” and that it “will pay the full price.”
“Hezbollah Secretary General Hassan Nasrallah destroyed the Shiite community in Lebanon, and Naim Kassem will do the same and pay, just like his predecessors. Anyone who raises a hand against Israel will be cut off. We will not return to the situation before October 7,” he noted.
In the statement, he also directly threatened Kasem, saying that in the end he would “pay with his head”, repeating earlier statements about the leaders of what he called the “axis of evil”. He confirmed that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and he had ordered the military to continue operating “with full force, on land and in the air,” including during the ceasefire, to protect Israeli forces and eliminate threats.
“The main goal of the operation in Lebanon is to disarm Hezbollah”
He cited the removal of Hezbollah infrastructure along the border and preventing future attacks on Israeli communities as the goal of the campaign.
According to him, Israeli forces are currently deployed in the security zone in southern Lebanon, which extends up to 10 kilometers from the border, from the Mediterranean Sea in the west to the slopes of Mount Hermon in the east. From that line, the military seeks to prevent attacks such as cross-border incursions or anti-tank fire, while at the same time targeting what he called “terrorist infrastructure.”
“The main objective of the operation in Lebanon is to disarm Hezbollah and remove the threat to communities in the north, through a combination of military and diplomatic measures,” Katz said. He added that the area under Israeli control must remain free of weapons and fighters, and that the wider zone up to the Litani River should be demilitarized.
“If the Lebanese government continues to fail to fulfill its obligations, the IDF will do so by continuing military activities,” he announced.
(Vijesti.ba)
