National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir (Otzma Yehudit) warned against a "weak ceasefire" deal in Lebanon amid the emerging US-Iran agreement, saying that Israel should reject any deal that does not lead to a decisive victory.
“Not another weak ceasefire. Anyone who threatens the citizens of Israel must pay a price that will be unbearable,” Ben-Gvir said during a Monday press conference at the Knesset.
The remarks came shortly after US Vice President JD Vance said that “a lot of good progress” had been made in talks held in Switzerland. Addressing the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hezbollah, Vance said that, while “we want Israel’s security to be protected, we also want Lebanon’s sovereignty to be protected,” describing the issue as an “ongoing conversation.”
Addressing the vice president, Ben-Gvir said in his answers to press questions: “I’m telling Vance, what would you do in response to these Nazis?”
“This is a historic opportunity to create security for our future generations, to look straight into the eyes of the families of the fallen and tell them that their sons did not fall in vain,” Ben-Gvir said.
'We respect' Trump, but Israel comes first - Ben Gvir
“The equation must be simple: the State of Israel must be safe.”
“If not, Beirut will look like Beit Hanoun [in the Gaza Strip],” he warned.
Ben-Gvir said that, while Israel values its relationship with US President Donald Trump, security considerations must take precedence.
“We respect President Trump, but first of all, the soldiers of Israel, our fighters, our citizens. The security of Israel’s civilians comes first,” he said.
Referring to multiple recent casualties of IDF soldiers, Ben-Gvir said Israel had paid a heavy price in Lebanon and argued that previous policies had failed to provide lasting security.
“Years of measured responses, imaginary equations, and attempts to buy temporary quiet have not brought security,” he said. “Our enemies interpreted this as weakness and continued to strengthen themselves.”
Ben-Gvir argued that future attacks on Israel should be met with a far harsher response.
The national security minister also added that, if “Lebanon allows itself to become a base for terrorism against Israel, Beirut must understand that it will not be able to continue operating normally.”
“Anyone who chooses war against Israel must bear the consequences,” he said.
Ben-Gvir then sharply criticized former prime minister Naftali Bennett, who is a leading candidate in the opposition bloc seeking to replace Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the upcoming elections.
“My position, which says the lives of Israel’s citizens come first, and that Israeli mothers must not continue paying the price for surrender to international pressure, represents a huge public in Israel, far more than the position of the fraud Bennett, who is once again taking a diving course toward the electoral threshold.”
“In moments like these, leadership is tested. Not in the ability to explain why something cannot be done, not in trying to please anyone, but in the courage to do what is necessary so that Israel’s citizens can live in security. The lives of our soldiers and residents come first,” Ben-Gvir said.
Jerusalem Post Staff contributed to this report.