Foreign Minister Gideon Saar on Sunday visited the missile impact site in the northern Arab-Israeli city of Zarzir, where 58 residents were injured in a missile strike last week.

In a statement to the international press, Saar said, “While we direct our fire at military targets, military infrastructure, and assets belonging to the evil regime in Iran, the Iranian regime deliberately targets civilians. All of the casualties and injuries we have suffered over the past two weeks from Iranian fire have been civilians. This is a war crime. This war exposes the true nature of the Iranian regime. This is not only how it acts toward Israel; it is how it behaves toward more than ten other countries in this region, including Arab states, where it attacks civilian infrastructure. The Iranian regime is committing war crimes, and the world must recognize this.”

Regarding Lebanon, Saar added, “If the Lebanese government and the Lebanese army want to change the situation, they must take action to stop the attacks carried out by Hezbollah from Lebanese territory into Israel. So far, they have done nothing significant to stop it. Ministers affiliated with Hezbollah still sit in the Lebanese government.”

“We support peace and normalization, including with Lebanon. We have no deep, fundamental disputes with the Lebanese state. The problem is Hezbollah. Hezbollah acts on orders from Tehran, not Beirut, contrary to the will of Lebanon and its citizens. Since the ceasefire in November 2024, Lebanon has not done what it was obligated to do to disarm Hezbollah. We are now seeing the consequences. We expect serious steps from Lebanon to stop the fire toward Israel. That is what must happen now.”

(YWN Israel Desk—Jerusalem)