Israel will take tough action against the Lebanese Hezbollah militia even after a ceasefire in the event of violations, the country’s defence minister said on Tuesday.
“It will no longer be as it was before,” said Israel Katz, according to his office, at a meeting with the UN Special Coordinator for Lebanon, Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert.
“We will act against any threat, anytime, anywhere,” Katz said.
“Any house in southern Lebanon that is rebuilt and used as a terrorist base will be destroyed,” Katz continued.
In addition, he said, action would be taken against any rearmament of Hezbollah and any attempted arms smuggling. “Any threat to our troops or Israeli citizens will be immediately destroyed.”
He emphasized that the Israeli government would show “zero tolerance” towards any violations of a ceasefire. At the same time, he called on the UN peacekeeping force, the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) to effectively implement a ceasefire.
