Minister Bar-ON. 'Israel's trial'
Photo: Sebastian Sheiner
Bar-On: We'll bring Wild West to Southern Lebanon
Interior minister tours north, meets with local council heads. Bar-On warns that if Lebanese government fails in restoring calm on border, Israel will step in
Interior Minister Ronnie Bar-On toured northern Israel on Friday and met with heads of the regional councils in the area. "Nasrallah has sentenced himself by his own acts. I doubt that he would be able to find a life insurance agent these days," he told Ynet.
Bar-On met with representatives of the local councils to listen to their grievances and present to them the objectives of the Lebanon operation as stipulated by the government.
"I came to express my support and was met by strong people. Everybody understands that this is a trial for the army, the determination of the leadership, and a trial for the people as well. We operate to have the constant threat of rockets on the northern communities removed once and for all," he said.
'Wild West in Lebanon'
"We ask that new ground rules be laid, and this operation is not limited in time. Obviously, the international community may exert pressure on Israel and not provide us with the necessary window of opportunity. We'll do our best in this period," he stated.
Bar-On stressed that Israel would see to it that the rocket attacks on Israel are stopped. "If the Lebanese government fails to take control over the border and put a stop to Hizbullah's shooting, we will do it. If it fails in restoring calm in Southern Lebanon, we'll bring the Wild West to the area," he warned.
In a security discussion at the Prime Minister's Office Thursday, attended by Defense Minister Amir Peretz, IDF Chief of Staff Dan Halutz and other senior defense officials, participants said that Israel intends to put a stop to the Katyusha attacks.
"We expected Hizbullah to break the rules, and we plan to break it in return," Peretz said.
