IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir said during a visit to troops posted in southern Lebanon on Wednesday that there “is no ceasefire,” as Israel and Hezbollah continued to exchange fire despite a truce that’s been in place for almost two weeks. Zamir’s comments came amid a reported push from Jerusalem to get the US to limit its historic direct talks with the Lebanese government to a two-week timeframe, and to sign off on a large-scale IDF campaign against Hezbollah, the Iran-backed Lebanese terror group, if the talks fail.
The US-mediated ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah, which started on April 17, was extended on April 24 for an additional three weeks, US President Donald Trump announced at the time. His announcement came as Israeli and Lebanese diplomats met for US-brokered talks. But cross-border fighting has continued. Speaking in the southern Lebanese town of Taybeh, one of the border villages where Israeli troops are deployed, Zamir said that the IDF “will not tolerate” Hezbollah’s attacks, while adding that Israel will not leave the security buffer zone it holds in south Lebanon until the threat to Israel’s northern communities is removed.
“In Lebanon, the mission assigned to us by the political echelon is to position ourselves along the line to prevent direct fire on the communities. We have achieved this; this is the line we are on. We may be required to remain on it,” Zamir said. “We will not tolerate attacks and fire on our communities, and we will not leave until long-term security for the northern communities is ensured,” he said, according to remarks published by the IDF. The IDF is continuing to fight, the chief of staff added, saying that the military is “working to deepen the operational achievements and to protect our forces.”“On the combat front, there is no ceasefire; you continue to fight, to remove direct and indirect threats from the northern communities, to thwart terror infrastructure, to locate and kill terrorists,” he continued. (Read More)
