Benjamin Netanyahu says Israel will stay in southern Lebanon until Hezbollah threat ends

On June 30 2026 Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited Israeli troops occupying southern Lebanon, the first such visit since a U.S.–mediated framework agreement was signed between Israel and Lebanon. He told soldiers, “We will not leave southern Lebanon until the threat disappears. As long as Hezbollah, armed and threatening us, remains here, we will stay here,” emphasizing that Israeli forces will remain until Hezbollah is disarmed. Netanyahu, accompanied by Defence Minister Israel Katz and senior military officials, referenced the deal’s “pilot zones” that will be handed over to the Lebanese army only after Hezbollah’s weapons are eliminated. He cited Hezbollah’s arsenal of roughly 12,000 rockets, claimed Israel has destroyed a 200‑meter tunnel and reduced Hezbollah’s rocket stock from 150 000 to about eight percent, and said Israeli forces have killed around 9 000 Hezbollah militants. The conflict has already caused over 4,000 Lebanese deaths, more than a million displaced persons, and 32 Israeli soldiers and four civilians killed. Netanyahu instructed troops to act immediately against any threat to their safety.