Netanyahu vows to block Iran’s nuclear ambitions, maintain security Zone in Lebanon

Middle East

JERUSALEM (NPA) — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed to maintain a security buffer in southern Lebanon and prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons, declaring that Israel will continue operations across the region despite international hesitation.

Speaking at the Federation of Local Authorities in Israel Conference, Netanyahu said a newly established security zone has curbed Hezbollah’s presence in Lebanon, while Israel dismantles underground infrastructure designed to threaten the Galilee.

He pledged that Israel would be the first nation to solve the global challenge of explosive drones, describing the effort as a “Manhattan Project.”

The Prime Minister recounted military actions in Gaza, Rafah, Syria, and Iran, including what he called Operation Rising Lion, conducted largely with the Mossad.

He said Israel acted decisively to protect its Druze community in Syria and to disrupt Iran’s nuclear ambitions, despite warnings from allies not to intervene.

Netanyahu revealed that he informed U.S. Presidents Joe Biden and Donald Trump of Israel’s plans, stressing that national survival sometimes requires defying external pressure. “There are moments when you must know how to tell even the President of the United States what we stand for,” he said.

He insisted that Israel’s campaign against Iran’s nuclear program remains unfinished but emphasised that progress has been “monumental.” “As long as I am Prime Minister, Iran will not have nuclear weapons. And as long as I am Prime Minister, we will maintain the security zone in southern Lebanon,” Netanyahu declared.