Israel continues operation against Hezbollah — Netanyahu

TEL AVIV, April 15. /TASS/. Israel continues its operation against Hezbollah and is set to achieve "peace through strength," Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said. "Our forces are continuing to strike Hezbollah. The fighting is focused on Bint Jbeil (a city in southern Lebanon located near the border - TASS). Bint Jbeil was the capital of Hezbollah in southern Lebanon. <…> We are about to overcome Bint Jbeil; we are, in effect, about to eliminate this great stronghold of Hezbollah," he said in a video address released by his office. According to Netanyahu, he has instructed the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) "to continue widening the security zone and to also spread it eastward toward the slopes of Mount Hermon." "Concurrently, we are conducting negotiations with Lebanon. These negotiations have not taken place for over 40 years. They are happening now because we are very strong, and nations are coming to us, not just Lebanon. In the negotiations with Lebanon, there are two central goals: First, the disarming of Hezbollah, and second, a sustainable peace. Peace through strength," he stated. Israel has been conducting a military operation against Hezbollah since March 2, after this pro-Iranian Shiite organization launched a missile attack on Israel in response for the assassination of Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. Following this, Israel began delivering massive strikes on Lebanon’s territory and launched a ground operation in the south of the country. Israel’s declared objective is to establish a buffer zone south of the Litani River in southern Lebanon to protect settlements in northern Israel that are often shelled by Hezbollah.