Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says he has instructed the military to further expand what he calls a “security buffer zone” in Lebanon.
– We are determined to fundamentally change the situation in the north, Netanyahu said in a speech during a visit to the Israel Defense Forces Northern Command headquarters in Safed in northern Israel on Sunday.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, today, at IDF Northern Command :
“I have just concluded an assessment at Northern Command with the Defense Minister, the IDF Chief-of-Staff, the Head of Northern Command, and also the division commanders. pic.twitter.com/U1ZqmzRM4A
— Prime Minister of Israel (@IsraeliPM) March 29, 2026
Netanyahu also said that the IDF’s actions are creating “visible cracks in the terror regime in Tehran”.
– Iran is no longer the same Iran. Hezbollah is no longer the same Hezbollah, and Hamas is no longer the same Hamas.
He further said that the three are “ravaged enemies fighting for their very existence”, writes Times of Israel.
– Instead of them surprising us, it is we who surprise them. It is we who take the initiative, it is we who attack, it is we who accelerate the pace of the game, and we are deep inside their territory. We are determined to change the situation in the north in a fundamental way.
Gaza-like destruction
Israel’s Defence Minister Israel Katz said on Tuesday that Israel is establishing a “security zone” up to the Litani River and retaining control over all Lebanese territory south of the river for the time being. This will entail a new occupation of southern Lebanon, write NTB-AFP-AP.
Naturally, Eide is concerned
Espen Barth Eide is, as usual, critical of everything Israel does against its enemies, something he expresses on X.
– I am deeply concerned about the developments in Lebanon, and alarmed by the attacks on healthcare workers and journalists. International humanitarian law must be respected at all times.
Healthcare personnel, hospitals and journalists must be protected, Eide said. He refers, among other things, to three journalists who were killed in an Israeli attack on Lebanon yesterday.
According to Israel, these were not exactly ordinary journalists. One of them was, according to the IDF, part of an elite unit in Hezbollah who worked as a journalist to conceal his work for the terror group, which according to the IDF consisted of exposing the positions of IDF soldiers.
All three of those killed were affiliated with Hezbollah’s television channels, Al-Manar and Al-Mayadeen.
Needs more soldiers for combat
The Israel Defense Forces are under heavy pressure, as they are engaged in combat on several fronts, both in the West Bank, in the Gaza Strip and in Syria. This comes in addition to the ongoing war in Iran.
According to opposition leader Yair Lapid, the IDF is stretched beyond breaking point. Israel’s Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir is also said to have issued a similar warning at a meeting of the security cabinet the day before.
– The government is sending the army into a multi-front war without a strategy, without the necessary means, and with far too few soldiers, Lapid said.
The IDF has also requested more soldiers in southern Lebanon.
– On the Lebanese front, the forward defence zone that we are establishing requires additional IDF forces, said military spokesman Effie Defrin in a televised briefing.
The strained situation in which the IDF finds itself may indicate that Israeli contributions to any potential American ground operation in Iran will be limited.