JERUSALEM(National Times)- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday that some Christian villages in southern Lebanon had asked to be annexed by Israel, in order to be protected from Hezbollah.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cChristian villages in Lebanon, some of them have actually asked to be annexed to Israel, because we protect them against the Hezbollah, Hezbollah fanatics who want to kill them, and we do the same things with Christians everywhere,\u201d Netanyahu told Fox News\u2019s show, The Sunday Briefing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Netanyahu did not name the Christian villages he said had made such a request.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Christian villages in the Marjeyoun area of southern Lebanon on Friday denied some media reports suggesting they had sought annexation, saying in a statement they had \u201cno power nor the legal right\u201d to make decisions of such magnitude.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The villages reaffirmed their determination to stay on their land, stressing their \u201cloyalty to their national identity\u201d and their \u201cattachment to their Lebanese flag\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Since the war began, some Christian villages in southern Lebanon have endured Israeli shelling, airstrikes, displacement, and infrastructure damage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Most have remained inhabited despite Israeli evacuation orders, with residents choosing to stay to protect their homes, churches and farmland, though some villages were partially or fully evacuated.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
During the war, the Israeli military has warned several Christian-majority villages \u2014 through phone calls to mayors and local officials \u2014 not to allow \u201cstrangers\u201d in, referring to Hezbollah fighters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u2018Who the boss is\u2019<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n In a separate speech at a state ceremony on Sunday, Netanyahu reiterated that Israel\u2019s military would maintain its presence in southern Lebanon \u201cas long as necessary in order to protect the residents of the north and all the citizens of Israel.\u201d Meanwhile, Israel\u2019s military chief, Lieutenant General Eyal Zamir, visited troops stationed near Beaufort Castle in southern Lebanon on Sunday, vowing that the army would \u201ccontinue to operate decisively to remove threats from Lebanese territory.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Israeli forces have continued to clash with Hezbollah fighters despite a US-brokered agreement between Israel and Lebanon intended to pave the way toward a lasting end to hostilities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n During his interview with Fox News<\/em>, Netanyahu also addressed reported disagreements with US President Donald Trump over the deal that halted the war with Iran.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cLet me say that we have an excellent relationship, which is defined, as I said, between allies,\u201d Netanyahu said. \u201cNinety-nine percent of the time, we see eye-to-eye, but as any, in any family, in any close friendship, there are sometimes differences of opinion, and we discuss them openly,\u201d Netanyahu said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI can tell you, in a free spirit, and usually we resolve them too.\u201d Netanyahu\u2019s remarks came a day after Trump told the news outlet Axios that Netanyahu \u201cknows who the boss is\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In recent weeks, Trump has repeatedly criticised the Israeli premier amid negotiations over the Iran deal, accusing him of ingratitude and even calling him \u201ccrazy\u201d over Israel\u2019s escalation in Lebanon. In his interview with Axios, Trump added that Netanyahu was expected to visit Washington in the coming days.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" JERUSALEM(National Times)- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday that some Christian villages in southern Lebanon had asked to be annexed by Israel, in order to be protected from Hezbollah. \u201cChristian villages in Lebanon, some of them have actually asked to be annexed to Israel, because we protect them against the Hezbollah, Hezbollah fanatics […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":128834,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-128833","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-latest_news","entry"],"yoast_head":"\n