Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said Israel would maintain its presence in southern Lebanon until Hezbollah is disarmed, adding that the country “doesn’t need permission” to do so.
The Hebrew-language newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth said Katz’s remarks came in response to US President Donald Trump’s statement that he believed Israel would withdraw from Lebanon under the framework agreement between Lebanon and Israel.
Speaking on the sidelines of the NATO summit in Ankara on Wednesday, Trump was asked whether he believed Israel should withdraw its forces from southern Lebanon. He replied that he had spoken with Benjamin Netanyahu, adding, “I think they’re going to. I think they want to…They’re getting along with Lebanon. They’re signing deals with Lebanon. First time ever.”
In a statement issued Thursday, Katz said: “We didn’t ask anyone for permission to enter Lebanon, and we don’t need permission to stay. It is our right and our duty to protect the residents of the Galilee and the citizens of Israel from Hezbollah’s threats, which seek to destroy the State of Israel.”
He claimed that “thanks to the decisions of the political leadership, the determination of the Israeli military command, the courage of the soldiers, and the resilience of the residents of the north,” Israel had established “a strong security zone in Lebanon, stretching from the Mediterranean in the west to the Beaufort Castle area and the approaches to Mount Hermon in the east.”
Katz said the area was “free of residents and terrorist infrastructure, both above and below ground,” adding: “As Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and I have made clear, we will remain in the security zone in Lebanon and operate from it as long as necessary, until Hezbollah is disarmed throughout Lebanon and the threat to the residents of the north is removed.”
Lebanon and Israel signed a US-sponsored agreement providing for additional security arrangements, including the formation of a “military coordination group” between the Lebanese and Israeli armies under US supervision. The arrangement is intended to coordinate security between the two sides and, in theory, reduce the need for a direct Israeli military presence inside Lebanon.
However, the agreement also gives Israel the right to act against armed groups across Lebanon, a provision that allows it to continue carrying out strikes there if it determines that a threat remains.
