Netanyahu: Nasrallah's Death Will Change Balance of Power in Region

Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addresses the 79th session of the United Nations General Assembly, Friday, Sept. 27, 2024. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)
Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addresses the 79th session of the United Nations General Assembly, Friday, Sept. 27, 2024. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)
TT

Netanyahu: Nasrallah's Death Will Change Balance of Power in Region

Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addresses the 79th session of the United Nations General Assembly, Friday, Sept. 27, 2024. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)
Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addresses the 79th session of the United Nations General Assembly, Friday, Sept. 27, 2024. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Saturday that the killing of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah was a historical turning point that could change the balance of power in the Middle East though he warned of “challenging days” ahead.

"Nasrallah was not a terrorist, he was the terrorist," Netanyahu said in a statement, in his first public remarks since Nasrallah's killing in airstrikes in Beirut’s southern suburbs on Friday.

Netanyahu said the killings of top Hezbollah commanders was not enough and he decided Nasrallah also needed to be killed.

He blamed Nasrallah for being “the architect” of a plan to “annihilate” Israel.

"Nasrallah's killing was a necessary step toward achieving the goals we have set, returning residents of the north safely to their homes and changing the balance of power in the region for years to come," Netanyahu said.



Israel Says it Carried Out Warning Strike on 'Extremists' in Syria Threatening Druze

Syrian security forces secure the area following armed clashes in Jaramana town, near Damascus, Syria, 29 April 2025. EPA/MOHAMMED AL RIFAI
Syrian security forces secure the area following armed clashes in Jaramana town, near Damascus, Syria, 29 April 2025. EPA/MOHAMMED AL RIFAI
TT

Israel Says it Carried Out Warning Strike on 'Extremists' in Syria Threatening Druze

Syrian security forces secure the area following armed clashes in Jaramana town, near Damascus, Syria, 29 April 2025. EPA/MOHAMMED AL RIFAI
Syrian security forces secure the area following armed clashes in Jaramana town, near Damascus, Syria, 29 April 2025. EPA/MOHAMMED AL RIFAI

The Israeli military carried out a warning strike against "extremists" preparing to attack members of the Druze minority in the Syrian town of Sahnaya, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Wednesday in a joint statement with Defense Minister Israel Katz.

"The IDF (military) carried out a warning action and struck the organization of an extremist group preparing to attack the Druze population in the town of Sahnaya, in the Damascus region of Syria," said the statement.

The Israeli announcement came after an eruption of deadly sectarian violence in predominantly Druze areas near Damascus.

The Israeli statement also said a message "was passed on to the Syrian regime - Israel expects it to act in order to prevent harm to the Druze."

A spokesman for Syria's interior ministry, speaking to Reuters from Sahnaya said he had no indication that an attack had taken place.