Defense Minister Benny Gantz on Monday issued another warning to the Hezbollah terrorist group, saying that Israel will use overwhelming force in any future war in Lebanon.
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The IDF's recent strikes in Gaza against the Hamas terrorist group, he said, were just scratching the surface in terms of Israel's military's capabilities, Gantz said at an IDF base in central Israel at an event marking Israel's recognition of its 18-year presence in southern Lebanon as an official military campaign.
"No manipulation of weakness will lead our enemy's to success. Lebanon needs to know that what Gaza experienced a few weeks ago is only the tip of the iceberg. The targets are ready. Those with rocket launchers hidden in their yards are putting their neighbors in jeopardy. Those who are armed by Iran and trying to operate in the aerial sphere – will be marked and shot down in the place of our choosing. The war that erupts from Lebanon, heaven forbid, will mostly take place on the enemy's territory, and the damage to it will be immense, painful and comprehensive," Gantz said.
In an apparent message to the Lebanese government, Gantz said: "War is not predestination. We can put an end to the decades-long fighting if only Lebanon's leadership would want it."
In a message to Hamas, which is holding captive the remains of two soldiers and two live Israeli civilians in Gaza, Gantz added that Israel will not pay the prices it once did to secure the release of its captive soldiers from terrorist groups.
In May, Gantz warned that if Hezbollah attacked Israel, "Lebanon will tremble."
"The houses in which weapons and terrorist operatives are being hidden will become rubble," he said at the time, adding that the "list of targets for Lebanon is bigger and more significant than the one for Gaza, and the score is ready to be settled if necessary."
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