Lebanese Culture Minister Ghassan Salamé issued a sharp rebuke of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu today, following Netanyahu's high-profile tour of the "security zone" in Southern Lebanon earlier this week.
"It's My Territory, Not His"
Minister Salamé expressed outrage over images of the Israeli Premier on Lebanese soil, where the IDF is currently conducting "Operation Silver Plow" - a campaign to dismantle Hezbollah infrastructure and demolish homes in border villages, to stop Hezbollah firing rockets at israeli towns.
"I was appalled by seeing Netanyahu parading on Lebanese territory," Salamé stated. "It's my territory. It's not his. They flatten out whole villages. I would advise our neighbors to the south some more humility."
The Challenge of Disarmament
The Minister also cast doubt on Israeli and international demands for the Lebanese government to forcibly disarm Hezbollah. Pointing to the ongoing conflict in Gaza, Salamé questioned how the Lebanese Army, significantly smaller and less equipped, could achieve what the IDF has struggled to finalize in over two years.
"If the Israelis have been unable to produce a complete disarmament of Hamas in Gaza in more than two years… how do you expect a much smaller, much weaker army to do it in Lebanon?" he asked.
Salamé emphasized that Hezbollah is deeply integrated into the local fabric: "The members of that armed group are not foreigners. They are part of the population. You are not fighting against a foreign enemy." He labeled the idea of a quick, forced disarmament an "illusion."
