Netanyahu, Katz give green light as Israel announces strikes against terror targets in Beirut

TEL AVIV: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defence Minister Israel Katz have instructed the country’s defence force to conduct strikes against terror targets in Beirut in response to what it has called Hezbollah’s repeated violations of the ceasefire in Lebanon and attacks against Israeli cities and civilians.

The announcement was shared by the Prime Minister’s Office on Monday in a post on X. As per the PMO, the strikes will target locations in the Dahia Quarter of Beirut.

“Following the Hezbollah terrorist organization’s repeated and ongoing violations of the ceasefire in Lebanon and its attacks against our civilians and cities, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz have instructed the IDF to strike terror targets in the Dahia Quarter of Beirut”, the PMO wrote on X.

Following the Hezbollah terrorist organization’s repeated and ongoing violations of the ceasefire in Lebanon and its attacks against our civilians and cities, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz have instructed the IDF to strike terror targets in…

— Prime Minister of Israel (@IsraeliPM) June 1, 2026

The key announcement comes shortly after Israeli media outlet The Jerusalem Post had reported that the United States has signalled that it does not expect Israel to absorb attacks against its civilians, thereby giving a green light to the country’s military for escalating operations in Beirut.

Citing two sources, Israeli Media reported that senior Israeli officials approached Washington over the weekend seeking approval to expand the IDF’s campaign, amid ongoing cross-border hostilities.

The United States “does not expect Israel to absorb ongoing attacks on its civilians by a terrorist organisation,” a US official told The Jerusalem Post on Monday following reports that Israel was seeking US approval for an expanded operation in Beirut, Lebanon. “The fastest way to de-escalate and protect civilians on all sides is for Hezbollah to stop firing immediately,” the official said.

According to the sources, Israeli officials were hopeful that Washington’s would be favourable, given the lack of progress in both the negotiations between Washington and Tehran and the talks between Israel and Lebanon. The official further mentioned that US Secretary of State Marco Rubio proposed a framework to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Lebanese President Joseph Aoun for de-escalating hostilities.

According to the official, the framework called on Hezbollah to stop all its attacks on Israel, with the IDF avoiding an escalation of its Beirut only in return for that initiative. The framework would thus create conditions for a gradual de-escalation of tensions and an effective cessation of hostilities, the official further noted.

Amid a rapidly developing security situation in West Asia, the Jerusalem Post reported that PM Netanyahu said that the IDF had killed 8,000 Hezbollah terrorists since the start of the war — with some 3,000 since the start of Operation Roaring Lion, and 700 in the past month alone.

“The capture of Beaufort is a dramatic stage and a dramatic change in the policy we are leading. We have broken the barrier of fear. We are taking the initiative, we are operating on all fronts – in Syria, in Gaza, in Lebanon; we have established security zones beyond our borders to protect our communities,” he said shortly after the capture of Beaufort.

The Jerusalem Post further noted that the statement seemed to indicate that Netanyahu may seek to hold Lebanese territory even beyond the Litani River to pressure Hezbollah toward disarmament, though many experts think the Lebanese terror group will not yield. (ANI)