Netanyahu touts war gains at IDF officers’ ceremony, draws cheers and jeers from crowd

Speaking at an IDF cadets’ graduation ceremony, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu hails Israel’s military achievements in its wars in Gaza, Lebanon and Iran, and draws mixed reactions from the crowd.

In a 20-minute speech, Netanyahu reiterates his determination to maintain Israel’s military presence in southern Lebanon and prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon, amid concerns in Jerusalem about US-Iran talks harming Israeli interests on both fronts.

About five minutes into his remarks, one member of the audience shouts in Hebrew, “Go home!” prompting scattered applause, before another attendee yells “Go Bibi!” seconds later, using Netanyahu’s nickname, and drawing louder cheers in support of the premier, who largely ignores both incidents.

“We dominate southern Lebanon… and we will remain in the security zone in southern Lebanon for as long as necessary,” Netanyahu says. “We are not going to withdraw from it… The defense minister and I have given the IDF clear instructions: You have complete freedom of action to thwart any threat to our soldiers or to the residents of the north,” he says.

A US State Department official claimed earlier today that Israel has withdrawn from some of the southern Lebanese territory it seized in its war with Hezbollah, following the latest round of Israel-Lebanon talks in Washington aimed at halting fighting, and as Tehran continues to insist Lebanon be included in its ceasefire with the US.

“With an agreement or without an agreement, as long as I am prime minister of Israel, Iran will not have nuclear weapons,” Netanyahu adds.

Pushing back against critics of his wartime leadership, Netanyahu argues that Israel had fundamentally transformed the strategic landscape of the Middle East, saying that “only the blind would say there have been no achievements,” listing military gains against Hamas in Gaza, Hezbollah in Lebanon, and the Iranian regime.

After the Hamas-led October 7, 2023, massacre that led to Israel’s wars on all three of those fronts, Netanyahu says, “those who pursued us are now being pursued.”

“Are there still things to do regarding Iran? Yes,” he says, adding: “There [also] is still more to do against Hamas, against Hezbollah, and against the threat of [Hezbollah] drones.”