Israeli defense chief warns Hezbollah — ‘You’re playing with fire’

Defense Minister Israel Katz urged the Lebanese government to fulfill its ceasefire commitment to disarm Hezbollah.

By World Israel News Staff

Defense Minister Israel Katz warned that Israel is losing patience with Hezbollah’s refusal to withdraw from southern Lebanon and with the Lebanese government’s failure to disarm the terror group.

Writing on his X account on Sunday morning, Katz said Israel’s intensifying attacks on Hezbollah’s infrastructure would continue until the group no longer poses a threat to the Jewish state.

“Hezbollah is playing with fire, and the Lebanese president is dragging his feet,” Katz wrote, confirming that the IDF had carried out an airstrike in southern Lebanon hours earlier that killed an elite Hezbollah commander.

“The Lebanese government’s commitment to disarm Hezbollah and remove it from southern Lebanon must be realized,” Katz said, referencing one of the terms of the November 2024 ceasefire brokered by the Biden administration between Hezbollah and Israel.

“Maximum enforcement will continue and deepen – we will not allow a threat to the residents of [Israel’s] north,” he added.

Katz’s warning came as U.S. Ambassador to Turkey Tom Barrack — who also serves as the Trump administration’s envoy to Syria and manages certain diplomatic responsibilities related to Lebanon — signaled that an armed confrontation between Hezbollah and Israel may soon be on the horizon.

Speaking at a security conference in Bahrain on Saturday, Barrack said that despite suffering major setbacks during the 2023–2024 conflict with Israel — including the so-called “beeper operation” and the assassination of longtime leader Hassan Nasrallah — Hezbollah still maintains a powerful arsenal of 15,000 to 20,000 missiles and rockets, as well as a 40,000-strong fighting force.

Israeli intelligence sources have repeatedly warned that Hezbollah is rebuilding its terror infrastructure in southern Lebanon. They say Israel’s tolerance is wearing thin as the group continues to defy international and domesti calls to disarm.

In recent weeks, Israel has conducted an increasing number of airstrikes against Hezbollah targets and reportedly informed international mediators that it expects another round of fighting in the near future.