Netanyahu says balance of power shifts after IDF strikes on Lebanon facilities
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the strikes by the country's armed forces against Shiite Hezbollah targets in Lebanon are a proactive action and change the balance of power on Israel's northern border.
"I promised that we will change the balance of security, the balance of power in the north. That is exactly what we are doing. We are destroying thousands of rockets aimed at Israeli cities and Israeli citizens," The Times of Israel quoted him as saying.
The prime minister emphasized that instead of waiting for a threat, Tel Aviv anticipates it. He also promised that Israel would respond to any forces trying to harm the country.
Earlier in the day, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) reported massive strikes on Hezbollah facilities in Lebanon. According to the Lebanese side, at least 100 people were killed and more than 400 wounded, including children, women and medical workers. Commenting on what is happening, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that the situation in the Middle East is degenerating every day.
Two waves of explosions of pagers and other communication devices belonging to Hezbollah members took place in Lebanon on September 17 and 18. According to the Lebanese Ministry of Health, quoted by the TV channel Al Arabiya, at least 37 people were killed and about 3,000 injured. Lebanese authorities and representatives of the Shiite movement blamed Israel for the explosions.
Then Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Galant announced that Tel Aviv was transferring forces to the northern front due to the start of a new phase of the war, and the IDF began striking Hezbollah facilities on Lebanese territory. These strikes continued in the following days.
The situation in the Middle East escalated on the morning of October 7, 2023, when the Palestinian radical movement Hamas launched a massive barrage of rockets into Israel from the Gaza Strip, as well as invading border areas in the south and taking hostages. On the same day, Israel began retaliatory strikes.
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