![Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gives a speech in the East Room at the White House in Washington, D.C., United States on February 04, 2025. [Celal Güneş - Anadolu Agency]](https://i0.wp.com/www.middleeastmonitor.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/AA-20250205-36957803-36957786-DONALD_TRUMP_BENJAMIN_NETANYAHU_JOINT_PRESS_CONFERENCE_IN_WASHINGTON_DC.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1)
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said yesterday that “the army is in control of five sites in southern Lebanon and will remain stationed there,” Anadolu reported.
This remark came as an Israeli air strike targeted a home in the suburbs of the Syrian capital, Damascus. Israel said it was targeting a command centre for the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) movement, however the PIJ has refuted the claim saying the occupation state targeted a home.
In a recorded message, Netanyahu claimed that “Israel attacks those who attack it or plan to attack it, and this applies not just in Syria but everywhere, even in Lebanon.”
On 18 February Israeli occupation forces withdrew from southern Lebanon, however they announced that they would remain in five border posts near settlements in northern Israel. This was in clear violation of the terms of the ceasefire agreed between the occupation state and Hezbollah at the end of November.
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