"Still in Full Force": Netanyahu Refutes Media Claims of an End to the War

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has issued a stern clarification regarding the status of the ongoing war, asserting that the campaign against the Iranian regime and its proxy, Hezbollah, remains in "full force." Speaking with a forum of government director-generals and mayors from northern border communities, the Prime Minister emphasized that despite various media reports suggesting a slowdown or a shift toward diplomacy, the military mission is actively expanding. Central to this strategy is the systematic expansion of the security zone within Lebanon, a move intended to ensure that Hezbollah can never again threaten Israeli residents in the north.

Dismantling the Northern Threat

The Prime Minister made it clear that the issue of dismantling Hezbollah’s military capabilities is "on the table" as a non-negotiable objective. He linked the fighting in Lebanon directly to the broader war with Iran, stating that the two cannot be separated. "We are determined to do everything to change the situation in Lebanon from the ground up," Netanyahu told the local leaders, many of whom have seen their communities evacuated for months. By expanding the buffer zone, the IDF aims to push the terrorist group’s elite forces and rocket arrays far beyond the range of Israeli border towns, creating a permanent geographic barrier that does not rely on failed international agreements.

Netanyahu’s comments serve as a strategic counter-narrative to recent diplomatic gestures from Washington and Tehran. He cautioned that the war with Iran is "still at its peak," suggesting that Israel will not be bound by any agreements that do not meet its specific security requirements. The focus remains on "changing the reality from the root," which involves the physical destruction of Hezbollah's infrastructure and the removal of the Iranian presence in the Levant. For the residents of the north, the Prime Minister’s message was one of long-term commitment, promising that the military will not stop until a new and sustainable security reality is established on the border.