Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday defended a series of key wartime decisions, arguing that military operations in Gaza, Lebanon, Syria and Iran had produced major strategic gains despite opposition from critics who warned against taking such actions.
Speaking at the Federation of Local Authorities in Israel’s annual MUNI EXPO 2026 conference at Expo Tel Aviv, Netanyahu said Israel would maintain its security zone in Southern Lebanon and continue preventing Hezbollah from threatening communities in the north.
“It’s true, Hezbollah is still in Lebanon, but there is something else there now,” Netanyahu said. “Today, there is a security zone there that prevents Hezbollah and its remnants from invading the Galilee, because that was the plan.”
The prime minister said Israeli forces are continuing to dismantle Hezbollah infrastructure in Southern Lebanon and reiterated his commitment to keep the security zone in place.
“As long as I am prime minister, we will maintain the security zone in Southern Lebanon,” he said. “For as long as it takes, we will maintain the security of the north.”
Netanyahu also highlighted Israel’s efforts to counter explosive drones, calling the threat a global challenge.
“We will be the first in the world to solve the explosive drone problem, which is a global issue, and we are solving it,” he said.
Turning to his broader wartime strategy, Netanyahu said many of the same voices that opposed operations in Rafah, Lebanon, Syria and Iran are now criticizing Israel for not going far enough.
“Today, they come and tell us, ‘You didn’t achieve 100%, only 80% to 90%,’” he said. “There is still work to do. It is not over, that is true, but the result is monumental.”
Netanyahu said critics had urged him not to enter Rafah, confront Hezbollah or launch “Operation Rising Lion” against Iran, warnings he chose to ignore.
“They told me not to enter Rafah. I entered Rafah. I was told not to strike Hezbollah. We struck Hezbollah. They told me not to confront Iran. We confronted Iran,” he said.
“If we had followed your suggestion to stop at Rafah, we would have gotten nada, ‘zero,’ gornisht, ‘nothing,’” he added.
The premier also defended Israel’s military actions in Syria, saying they had helped protect the Druze community.
“We will protect our Druze brothers, and we will never abandon them,” Netanyahu said. “We have protected them, and we will protect them.”
Turning to Iran, Netanyahu reiterated that preventing the Islamic Republic from acquiring nuclear weapons has been one of the central missions of his public life.
“I saw it as an existential threat to our survival,” he said. “I do not want the thousands-of-years-old existence of the Jewish people to be cut short by these Ayatollahs acquiring nuclear weapons.”
Netanyahu said he rejected repeated warnings against military action against Iran and defended Israel’s decision to launch “Operation Rising Lion.”
“So I did not listen to them, and I led ‘Operation Rising Lion,’” he said. “I chose this name, ‘A people shall rise like a lion,’ because we have a nation of lions and an army of lions.”
He also recounted conversations with former President Joe Biden and U.S. President Donald Trump regarding Israel’s military operations.
Recalling opposition to an operation in Rafah, Netanyahu said he informed Biden that Israel would proceed regardless.
“I said I respect him very much, and he even came here at the beginning of the war, but we have no choice, we will enter—and if we must, we will fight with our fingernails,” Netanyahu said.
“There are moments when you must know how to tell even the president of the United States what we stand for,” he added.
Netanyahu said he similarly informed Trump of Israel’s plans before launching “Operation Rising Lion.”
“When I came to President Trump before ‘Operation Rising Lion,’ I told him: ‘We are going into Iran,’” Netanyahu said. “I didn’t ask for permission; I simply informed him of our plan.”
He credited Trump with later joining the effort through what he described as “a very important action.”
While acknowledging that challenges remain in Gaza, Lebanon and Iran, Netanyahu said Israel’s military achievements have fundamentally altered the strategic landscape.
“There is still work to do in Gaza, in Lebanon and against Iran,” he said. “But the result is monumental.”
