Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed additional “surprising blows” against the Iranian-backed terrorist group Hezbollah on Sunday after Israel Defense Forces (IDF) launched an attack on Lebanon just moments before Hezbollah was prepared to aim thousands of rockets into the Jewish nation.
What happened today is not the end of the story. Hezbollah tried to attack the State of Israel with rockets and drones early in the morning. We instructed the IDF to carry out a powerful pre-emptive strike to remove the threat. The IDF destroyed thousands of short-range rockets, and they were all intended to harm our citizens and our forces in Galilee. In addition, the IDF intercepted all the UAVs that Hezbollah launched for a strategic purpose in the center of the country. We are hitting Hezbollah with surprising blows. Three weeks ago, we eliminated his chief of staff, and today, we foiled his attack plan. Nasrallah in Beirut and Khamenei in Tehran should know that this is another step on the way to change the situation in the north and return our residents safely to their homes. And I repeat – this is not the end of the story— via Netanyahu’s statement.
The IDF called its strikes on Hezbollah “preemptive” and said it removed a “wider threat” and that Israel had successfully defeated “most of the attack” that Hezbollah had planned to carry out.
For more than a month, a greater war between Israel and Lebanon had been widely anticipated. However, according to reports, fears of a war between the two nations appear to be dampened, at least for now.
Hezbollah described this as being the “first phase” of its response to Israel’s attack, but the details of what they mean are unclear. Netanyahu echoed similar remarks, saying, “This is not the end of the matter.”
President Joe Biden reportedly closely monitors the situation and has been engaged with his national security team.
“We will keep supporting Israel’s right to defend itself, and we will keep working for regional stability,” White House National Security Council spokesman Sean Savett said. Officials said that there is no indication that another attack is on the horizon from either party.