Article By Samantha Kamman
A Christian village leader in Lebanon has denied a claim by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that Christian villages asked to be annexed by Israel as the Israeli military works to dismantle the Hezbollah terror group’s infrastructure.
During an interview with Fox News on Sunday, the Israeli prime minister stated that “the Christian villages in Lebanon, some of them have actually asked to be annexed to Israel because we protect them against the Hezbollah fanatics who want to kill them — and we do the same things with Christians everywhere.”
Netanyahu did not specify, which Christian villages he meant, but later clarified:
“It’s not only the Christians in Lebanon who asked for our protection. It’s the Druze, it’s Muslims, the Sunni muslims and quite a few of the Shiite muslims, too. … They’d like to free Lebanon. I hope we can get more peace deals.”
Hanna Al-Amil, the mayor of Rmeish, told Lebanon’s National News Agency that Netanyahu’s claim was “completely false,” according to Middle East Monitor. He also argued that no towns in southern Lebanon have made such a request, claiming that a move like that would be “completely out of the question.”
The mayor stated that the towns “are not peripheral, but rather the heart of Lebanon, pulsating with patriotism, attachment to the land, and Lebanese identity.”
The Christian Post has reached out to the Israeli prime minister’s office. This article will be updated if a response is received.
A senior official from the Lebanese Kataeb Party, which opposes Hezbollah, also rejected Netanyahu’s claim, saying, “Occupation and siege are not a choice.”
“The people of these villages have no connection to either Israel or Hezbollah,” a senior official who asked not to be named told The New Arab.
On Monday, Israeli Ambassador to the U.S., Yechiel Leiter, said that Israel and Lebanon plan to meet for another round of talks next week in Rome.
Leiter said Israel doesn’t have territorial ambitions in Lebanon doesn’t have plans to withdraw until the Lebanese Armed Forces can demonstrate that they have begun disarming Hezbollah, an Iran-backed terror group.
Last month, Israel and Lebanon reached an agreement with the support of U.S. President Donald Trump following talks held in the U.S. As reflected in the agreement, Israel and Lebanon recognize one another’s right to exist and their “shared goal of achieving lasting peace and security.”
The agreement also states that Israel’s military actions in Lebanon are a consequence of the threat posed by groups like Hezbollah, whose actions include launching rockets and artillery into Israeli territory.
“The Government of Israel underscores that the termination of this threat, through the disarmament and dismantlement of such groups in all of Lebanon and additional security arrangements to be agreed upon between the two countries, will eliminate any future need for IDF military action or presence in Lebanon,” one section of the agreement states. “Pursuant to the above, the Government of Israel declares that it has no territorial ambitions in Lebanon.”
The Israeli military has also issued statements clarifying its purpose in Lebanon and respect for religious freedom after two separate incidents involving IDF soldiers went viral.
Earlier this year, a photo of an IDF soldier putting a cigarette in the mouth of a statue of the Virgin Mary in southern Lebanon went viral on social media.
In a May 11 statement, IDF spokesperson Lt. Col. Ariella Mazor said that, following an investigation, “the soldier documented carrying out the act was sentenced to 21 days of military prison, and the soldier who filmed the incident was sentenced to 14 days of military prison.”
Mazor added that the Israeli military “views the incident with great severity and respects freedom of religion and worship, as well as holy sites and religious symbols of all religions and communities. Procedures regarding conduct around religious institutions and religious symbols are routinely reinforced to troops prior to entering the relevant areas.”
Weeks earlier, two IDF soldiers were removed from their units and sentenced to military prison when one of them smashed a crucifix with a sledgehammer while another photographed the act in the southern Lebanese village of Debel.
Following an inquiry into the incident, the IDF determined that “the soldiers’ conduct completely deviated from IDF orders and values,” according to a statement.
“The IDF expresses deep regret over the incident and emphasizes that its operations in Lebanon are directed solely against the Hezbollah terrorist organization and other terrorist groups, and not against Lebanese civilians,” the IDF added.
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