Katz threatened to evacuate residents of Lebanese areas northwards as far as the Awali and Zahrani line, and to clear most of Beirut’s southern suburbs, saying the operations he vowed to carry out would displace more than one million people inside Lebanon. Katz, speaking from inside Lebanese territory, said Hezbollah would “receive a severe blow”.
Katz announces the establishment of a permanent security zone
He added that areas in Nabatieh and along the Litani would become part of what he described as Israel’s “permanent security zone”. He said the evacuation of residents and the clearing of most of Beirut’s southern suburbs would pave the way for targeting what he described as “terrorist infrastructure”. Katz linked these moves to operations that he said would displace more than one million people inside the country.
In a related development, Katz said Israel would not withdraw from the areas it controls in Lebanon and Syria, which it calls “security zones”.
He said Israel’s military presence in those areas was intended to protect residents of the Galilee and the Golan. Katz also threatened Hezbollah Secretary-General Naim Qassem, hinting that he could be targeted in the same way as his predecessor, Hassan Nasrallah.
