PM: Strikes meant to end ‘existential threat’; time for Iranians to cast off yoke of tyranny

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Saturday issued a video message to the public after Israel and the US launched a wave of strikes against Iran, saying the operation aims “to remove the existential threat” posed by the Islamic Republic, and “create the conditions” for Iranians to change their destiny.

“My brothers and sisters, citizens of Israel, a short while ago Israel and the United States launched an operation to remove the existential threat posed by the terror regime in Iran,” he said.

The major wave of strikes carried out Saturday morning targeted Iranian regime sites and military facilities, according to an Israeli official, who added that Israel was preparing for several days of conflict with Iran.

“I thank our great friend, President Donald Trump, for his historic leadership,” Netanyahu added. Trump, in his own video message, declared “major combat operations” were launched against Iran, and indicated that the goal was to topple the regime as he called on the Iranian people to seize the opportunity and take over their government.

“For 47 years, the Ayatollah regime has called out ‘Death to Israel’ and ‘Death to America.’ It has shed our blood, murdered many Americans, and massacred its own people,” Netanyahu continued.

“This murderous terror regime must not be allowed to arm itself with nuclear weapons that would enable it to threaten all of humanity,” he said, adding: “Our joint action will create the conditions for the brave Iranian people to take their destiny into their own hands.”

אחיי ואחיותיי אזרחי ישראל, לפני שעה קלה יצאנו ישראל וארה״ב למבצע להסרת האיום הקיומי מצד משטר הטרור באיראן.

אני מודה לידידינו הגדול הנשיא דונלד טראמפ על מנהיגותו ההיסטורית.

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במשך 47 שנים קורא משטר האייתוללות ״מוות לישראל״, ״מוות לאמריקה״. הוא הקיז את דמינו, רצח אמריקנים רבים וטבח… pic.twitter.com/itTF5b4jB4

— Benjamin Netanyahu – בנימין נתניהו (@netanyahu) February 28, 2026

“The time has come for all parts of the Iranian people — the Persians, the Kurds, the Azeris, the Baloch, and the Ahwazi — to cast off the yoke of tyranny and bring about a free and peace-seeking Iran,” the premier said.

“I call upon you, citizens of Israel, to follow the instructions of the Home Front Command. In the coming days, during Operation Roaring Lion, we will all be required to show patience and inner strength,” he said.

“Together we will stand, together we will fight, and together we will ensure the future of Israel,” he added.

Lapid, other politicians offer support

Meanwhile, politicians from across the Israeli political spectrum expressed their support Saturday for the operation, with opposition leaders offering swift statements as the country braced for potential retaliation.

“I want to remind us all: The people of Israel are strong. The IDF and the Air Force are strong. The strongest power in the world stands with us,” Opposition Leader Yair Lapid wrote in English on his X account. “In moments like these, we stand together – and we win together. There is no coalition and no opposition, only one people and one IDF, with all of us behind them.”

Shortly after his first post, Lapid also wrote “a message to the people of Iran” in Persian that read, “You are not our enemy. We have followed your protests with admiration and respect.”

I want to remind us all: The people of Israel are strong. The IDF and the Air Force are strong. The strongest power in the world stands with us.

In moments like these we stand together – and we win together.

There is no coalition and no opposition, only one people and one IDF,…

— יאיר לפיד – Yair Lapid (@yairlapid) February 28, 2026

“We stand with you against this evil regime; a regime that has brought nothing but death and destruction to your country and the entire region,” he wrote. “When this war ends, and this regime is gone, we pray for peace between our historic nations and the dawn of a new era for the Middle East.”

In his post, Yisrael Beytenu chairman Avigdor Liberman referenced the upcoming Purim festival, set to begin Monday evening. “We overcame Haman, we will overcome [Ali] Khamenei too,” he wrote, comparing the villain of the Purim story, set in Persia, to the supreme leader of Iran.

Similarly, Blue and White chairman Benny Gantz posted, in Hebrew, “We stand together – and we will win!”

Former defense minister Yoav Gallant posted a past picture of himself speaking with Israeli Air Force soldiers, along with a caption in both English and Hebrew reading, “Good luck.”

Saturday’s strikes follow weeks of escalating tensions between the US and Iran, including three rounds of indirect nuclear talks that failed to produce a deal, a massive American military buildup in the region, and US President Donald Trump’s warning during his State of the Union address that Iran was working to rebuild the nuclear program the US “obliterated” in strikes last June.