Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu delivered a message to the Lebanese people on Tuesday, urging them to “take back your country” from Hezbollah and from Iran, which arms and funds the terrorist organization.
Netanyahu spoke on a day when Israel took control of the border town of Maroun al-Ras, formerly a Hezbollah stronghold from which the terror organization had fired on Israeli communities — and which had featured a statue of Iranian general Qasem Soleimani pointing toward Israel. (Soleimani was killed in an airstrike in Iraq ordered by then-President Donald Trump in 2020.)
Israel’s advance is seen as a major blow to Hezbollah and to Iran.
The speech was Netanyahu’s second address to the people of Lebanon since Israel began its counterattack three weeks ago, following nearly a year of Hezbollah missile, rocket, and drone attacks against northern Israeli towns.
The transcript, released by the Government Press Office, is as follows:
This is a message to the people of Lebanon:
Do you remember when your country was called the pearl of the Middle East?
I do.
So, what happened to Lebanon? A gang of tyrants and terrorists destroyed it. That’s what happened.
Lebanon was once known for its tolerance, for its beauty.
Today, it’s a place of chaos, a place of war.
Israel withdrew from Lebanon 25 years ago.
But the country that actually conquered Lebanon is not Israel. It’s Iran. Iran, which finances and arms Hezbollah to serve Iran’s interests at Lebanon’s expense.
Hezbollah has turned Lebanon into a stockpile of ammunition weapons and a forward Iranian military base.
Just one day after the October 7th massacre a year ago, Hezbollah joined the war against Israel.
It launched an unprovoked attack on our cities and on our citizens.It has since fired over 8,000 missiles at Israel, killing civilians without distinction—Jews, Christians, Muslims and Druze.
Israel has decided to put an end to this. We’ve decided to do whatever is necessary to return our people safely to their homes.
Israel has a right to defend itself. Israel also has a right to win! And Israel will win!
We have degraded Hezbollah’s capabilities; we took out thousands of terrorists, including Nasrallah himself, and Nasrallah’s replacement, and the replacement of his replacement.
Today, Hezbollah is weaker than it has been for many many years.
Now you, the Lebanese people, you stand at a significant crossroads.
It is your choice.
You can now take back your country. You can return it to a path of peace and prosperity.
If you don’t, Hezbollah will continue to try to fight Israel from densely populated areas at your expense.
It doesn’t care if Lebanon is dragged into a wider war.
Christians, Druze, Muslims—Sunnis and Shiites—all of you are suffering because of Hezbollah’s futile war against Israel.
Today I ask every mother and every father in Lebanon a simple question:
Is it worth it? Because, it doesn’t have to be that way.
I know you want a better future for your children.
So I am speaking to all of you today.
There is a better way.
A better way for your children, for your cities, for your villages, for your country.
You deserve to restore Lebanon to its days of tranquility; you deserve a Lebanon that is different.
One Country – One Flag – One People.
Don’t let these terrorists destroy your future any more than they’ve already done.
Stand up and take your country back.
You have an opportunity that hasn’t existed in decades.
An opportunity to take care of the future of your children and grandchildren.
You have an opportunity to save Lebanon before it falls into the abyss of a long war that will lead to destruction and suffering like we see in Gaza. It doesn’t have to be that way.
Each of you can take a step for your future.
Even a small step.
You can make a difference.
I say to you, the people of Lebanon:
Free your country from Hezbollah so that this war can end.
Free your country from Hezbollah so that your country can prosper again, so that future generations of Lebanese and Israeli children will know neither war nor bloodshed, but will finally live together in peace.
Netanyahu implicitly confirmed that Nasrallah’s putative replacement, Hashim Safieddine, had been killed in an Israeli airstrike — a claim that his defense minister, Yoav Gallant, had appeared to confirm earlier in the day.
In late September, as Israel launched its ground invasion of southern Lebanon, Netanyahu also released a message to the Iranian people, urging them to reject the theocratic regime that has dominated their country for half a century.
Joel B. Pollak is Senior Editor-at-Large at Breitbart News and the host of Breitbart News Sunday on Sirius XM Patriot on Sunday evenings from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. ET (4 p.m. to 7 p.m. PT). He is the author of The Agenda: What Trump Should Do in His First 100 Days, available for pre-order on Amazon. He is also the author of The Trumpian Virtues: The Lessons and Legacy of Donald Trump’s Presidency, now available on Audible. He is a winner of the 2018 Robert Novak Journalism Alumni Fellowship. Follow him on Twitter at @joelpollak.
Photo: file
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