Netanyahu updates Herzog on Iran operation; president hails attack, calls for release of hostages

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reviews with President Isaac Herzog the current political and diplomatic situation in light of Israel’s strikes on Iranian nuclear and military capabilities, the Prime Minister’s Office says in a statement.

Netanyahu also “thanked President Herzog, who expressed his support for him, the members of the security cabinet, and the heads of the security establishment, for the successful operation,” the statement reads.

In a post on X, Herzog praises the operation — dubbed “Rising Lion” — saying, “Every delay of the Iranian nuclear threat, every Iranian missile intercepted, every drone neutralized, helps to defend and protect innocent lives, not only in Israel but across the region and beyond.”

Herzog adds that Iran’s “empire of evil proxies, who carried out the October 7 massacre, still hold 53 innocent hostages in Gaza under brutal conditions. We demand their immediate release.”

“This is a struggle for the safety of the Middle East and the world. This is a battle for a more peaceful future in the Middle East. This is a battle for the values of the free world. Iran must not have nuclear capabilities,” he says.