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Netanyahu Tells UN to Get Forces Out of Harm’s Way in Lebanon
UNIFIL peacekeepers drive in a vehicle in Naqoura, in southern Lebanon, near the border with Israel, Oct. 13, 2020. Photo: Reuters / Aziz Taher.
JNS.org – Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday called for United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres to remove UNIFIL peacekeepers from areas of IDF activity in Southern Lebanon.
“I want to directly address the U.N. Secretary-General from here: It is time for you to remove UNIFIL from Hezbollah’s strongholds and from the combat areas,” the premier said in a statement.
“The IDF has repeatedly requested this, only to be met with refusal, a refusal aimed solely at providing Hezbollah terrorists with a human shield. Your refusal to evacuate UNIFIL soldiers turns them into hostages of Hezbollah. This endangers both them and the lives of our soldiers,” he continued.
“We regret the harm caused to UNIFIL soldiers, and we are doing everything we can to prevent it. But the simplest and most obvious way to ensure their safety is to simply remove them from the danger zone.
Mr. Secretary-General, get the UNIFIL forces out of harm’s way. It should be done right now, immediately,” Netanyahu said.
“Unfortunately, some European leaders are applying pressure in the wrong place. Instead of criticizing Israel, they should direct their criticism at Hezbollah, which uses UNIFIL as a human shield, just as Hamas in Gaza uses UNRWA as a human shield. Unfortunately, in Gaza, UNRWA even collaborates with Hamas.”
Netanyahu issued the comments following reports that Israeli forces fired on U.N. peacekeeping positions in Lebanon.
The United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon said on Saturday that unidentified gunfire hit a peacekeeper on Friday, the fifth U.N. soldier wounded in Southern Lebanon in two days.
UNIFIL also said that buildings in Ramyah “sustained significant damage due to explosions from nearby shelling.”
Two U.N. peacekeepers were injured on Friday by an Israeli strike close to their watchtower in Southern Lebanon, the IDF said, expressing “deep concern” and saying that troops fired at an “immediate threat” coming from near a UNIFIL position.
The IDF said that the peacekeepers were warned hours earlier to take shelter. UNIFIL said the two injured peacekeepers were from Sri Lanka.
Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati told the AFP news agency on Sunday that Netanyahu’s demand to Guterres “represents a new chapter in the enemy’s approach of not complying with international” norms.
Beirut “condemns Netanyahu’s position and the Israeli aggression against UNIFIL” peacekeepers, the Lebanese leader added.
Meanwhile on Sunday, sirens sounded in the Upper Galilee, central Galilee, Haifa, Acre and surrounding areas of northern Israel amid Hezbollah’s daily rocket, missile and drone fire across the border.
As of 3 p.m., approximately 115 projectiles that were fired by the Hezbollah terrorist organization have crossed from Lebanon into Israel today [Sunday],” the military said. “The IDF will continue to defend the State of Israel and its people against the threat posed by the Hezbollah terrorist organization.”
Hezbollah terrorist captured
Israeli ground troops operating in Southern Lebanon apprehended a Hezbollah terrorist embedded in an underground compound, the IDF said on Sunday.
During a targeted raid, soldiers discovered an underground tunnel shaft in a building leading to a hideout area for terrorists with an adjacent exit shaft.
Troops encircled the building, scanned the tunnel shaft, and discovered the compound seven meters deep and a 50-meter hideout area, where the terrorist was located alongside weapons and equipment for a long-term stay.
The terrorist surrendered and was interrogated on-site before being transferred to a detention facility in Israel for further questioning, the IDF said.
Drone footage shows Israeli ground activities in Lebanon
The IDF on Sunday published drone footage of ground activities in Southern Lebanon, showcasing the work of the 8th Reserve Armored Brigade alongside the counter-terrorism unit of the Marom Paratroopers Brigade, under the command of the 91st Division, aka the Galilee Formation.
Video documentation from Southern Lebanon includes a tunnel shaft in the heart of a village, dozens of underground infrastructures and the elimination of terrorists.
“The forces are engaging in hand-to-hand combat, eliminating terrorists and destroying terror infrastructures that Hezbollah has deployed along the border,” the IDF said.
“The forces are locating, confiscating and destroying numerous weapons, including dozens of rockets, Kalashnikovs, Kornet [man-portable anti-tank guided] missiles, grenades and ammunition intended for use by Radwan Force,” the army continued.
In addition, the forces located several weapons storage facilities equipped with dozens of missiles inside civilian homes.
200 Hezbollah targets hit
The Israeli Air Force in cooperation with the IDF Northern Command struck some 200 Hezbollah terror targets in Southern Lebanon and deeper into Lebanese territory over the past 24 hours. The targets included terrorist squads, launchers, military structures, anti-tank positions and “military” headquarters.
Moreover, over the past 24 hours, ground troops in Southern Lebanon have “eliminated dozens of terrorists, uncovered shafts and located numerous weapons, including firearms, launchers, anti-tank missiles, ammunition and more.”
Two soldiers severely wounded
Two soldiers from the 9920th Battalion, 6th “Etzioni” Reserve Infantry Brigade, were severely wounded in separate incidents during combat operations in Southern Lebanon, the IDF said on Sunday.
Other soldiers were lightly and moderately wounded during the incidents.
The soldiers were evacuated to the hospital and their families were notified.
Galilee Medical Center in Nahariya reported on Sunday receiving 17 casualties from Southern Lebanon, most with minor injuries. Four were in moderate condition due to shrapnel wounds.
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Israel to Send Delegation to Qatar for Gaza Ceasefire Talks
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks during a news conference in Jerusalem, Sept. 2, 2024. Photo: Ohad Zwigenberg/Pool via REUTERS
Israel has decided to send a delegation to Qatar for talks on a possible Gaza hostage and ceasefire deal, an Israeli official said, reviving hopes of a breakthrough in negotiations to end the almost 21-month war.
Palestinian group Hamas said on Friday it had responded to a US-backed Gaza ceasefire proposal in a “positive spirit,” a few days after US President Donald Trump said Israel had agreed “to the necessary conditions to finalize” a 60-day truce.
The Israeli negotiation delegation will fly to Qatar on Sunday, the Israeli official, who declined to be named due to the sensitivity of the matter, told Reuters.
But in a sign of the potential challenges still facing the two sides, a Palestinian official from a militant group allied with Hamas said concerns remained over humanitarian aid, passage through the Rafah crossing in southern Israel to Egypt and clarity over a timetable for Israeli troop withdrawals.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is due to meet Trump in Washington on Monday, has yet to comment on Trump’s announcement, and in their public statements Hamas and Israel remain far apart.
Netanyahu has repeatedly said Hamas must be disarmed, a position the terrorist group, which is thought to be holding 20 living hostages, has so far refused to discuss.
Israeli media said on Friday that Israel had received and was reviewing Hamas’ response to the ceasefire proposal.
The post Israel to Send Delegation to Qatar for Gaza Ceasefire Talks first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Tucker Carlson Says to Air Interview with President of Iran
Tucker Carlson speaks on July 18, 2024 during the final day of the Republican National Convention at the Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Photo: Jasper Colt-USA TODAY via Reuters Connect
US conservative talk show host Tucker Carlson said in an online post on Saturday that he had conducted an interview with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, which would air in the next day or two.
Carlson said the interview was conducted remotely through a translator, and would be published as soon as it was edited, which “should be in a day or two.”
Carlson said he had stuck to simple questions in the interview, such as, “What is your goal? Do you seek war with the United States? Do you seek war with Israel?”
“There are all kinds of questions that I didn’t ask the president of Iran, particularly questions to which I knew I could get an not get an honest answer, such as, ‘was your nuclear program totally disabled by the bombing campaign by the US government a week and a half ago?’” he said.
Carlson also said he had made a third request in the past several months to interview Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who will be visiting Washington next week for talks with US President Donald Trump.
Trump said on Friday he would discuss Iran with Netanyahu at the White House on Monday.
Trump said he believed Tehran’s nuclear program had been set back permanently by recent US strikes that followed Israel’s attacks on the country last month, although Iran could restart it at a different location.
Trump also said Iran had not agreed to inspections of its nuclear program or to give up enriching uranium. He said he would not allow Tehran to resume its nuclear program, adding that Iran did want to meet with him.
Pezeshkian said last month Iran does not intend to develop nuclear weapons but will pursue its right to nuclear energy and research.
The post Tucker Carlson Says to Air Interview with President of Iran first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Hostage Families Reject Partial Gaza Seal, Demand Release of All Hostages
Demonstrators hold signs and pictures of hostages, as relatives and supporters of Israeli hostages kidnapped during the Oct. 7, 2023 attack by Hamas protest demanding the release of all hostages in Tel Aviv, Israel, Feb. 13, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Itai Ron
i24 News – As Israeli leaders weigh the contours of a possible partial ceasefire deal with Hamas, the families of the 50 hostages still held in Gaza issued an impassioned public statement this weekend, condemning any agreement that would return only some of the abductees.
In a powerful message released Saturday, the Families Forum for the Return of Hostages denounced what they call the “beating system” and “cruel selection process,” which, they say, has left families trapped in unbearable uncertainty for 638 days—not knowing whether to hope for reunion or prepare for mourning.
The group warned that a phased or selective deal—rumored to be under discussion—would deepen their suffering and perpetuate injustice. Among the 50 hostages, 22 are believed to be alive, and 28 are presumed dead.
“Every family deserves answers and closure,” the Forum said. “Whether it is a return to embrace or a grave to mourn over—each is sacred.”
They accused the Israeli government of allowing political considerations to prevent a full agreement that could have brought all hostages—living and fallen—home long ago. “It is forbidden to conform to the dictates of Schindler-style lists,” the statement read, invoking a painful historical parallel.
“All of the abductees could have returned for rehabilitation or burial months ago, had the government chosen to act with courage.”
The call for a comprehensive deal comes just as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu prepares for high-stakes talks in Washington and as indirect negotiations between Israel and Hamas are expected to resume in Doha within the next 24 hours, according to regional media reports.
Hamas, for its part, issued a statement Friday confirming its readiness to begin immediate negotiations on the implementation of a ceasefire and hostage release framework.
The Forum emphasized that every day in captivity poses a mortal risk to the living hostages, and for the deceased, a danger of being lost forever. “The horror of selection does not spare any of us,” the statement said. “Enough with the separation and categories that deepen the pain of the families.”
In a planned public address near Begin Gate in Tel Aviv, families are gathering Saturday evening to demand that the Israeli government accept a full-release deal—what they describe as the only “moral and Zionist” path forward.
“We will return. We will avenge,” the Forum concluded. “This is the time to complete the mission.”
As of now, the Israeli government has not formally responded to Hamas’s latest statement.
The post Hostage Families Reject Partial Gaza Seal, Demand Release of All Hostages first appeared on Algemeiner.com.