Former prime minister and Yesh Atid? No, Together party chief Naftali Bennett on Tuesday launched a sharp attack on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz, saying they lied when they claimed at 11 p.m. that the IDF had full freedom of action in Lebanon. Bennett said the truth was that “our sons’ hands in Lebanon are tied.”
Bennett said he had spoken late into the night with soldiers and commanders who are currently in Lebanon or had returned from there within the previous day. He said he was presenting what he described as “the facts from the field” after hearing firsthand accounts from troops and officers.
He listed six main claims: Hezbollah operatives are reestablishing themselves, repairing infrastructure and rearming while Israeli troops are barred from opening fire; militants are observed surveilling IDF soldiers with binoculars but cannot be shot; decisions that once could be made by a company commander now require divisional approval, causing delays that let armed men disappear; the enemy is exploiting the restrictions to rebuild quickly and endanger soldiers; Air Force aircraft have stopped operating entirely; and wounded soldiers were harmed because heavy supporting fire was not used during rescue operations. Bennett concluded, “This is the picture from the field right now. This is negligence.”
His comments came amid earlier reports of anger among IDF fighters over the ceasefire in southern Lebanon, after Israel ordered a halt to fire there following U.S. requests. Military correspondent Yossi Yehoshua had said the IDF opposed the ceasefire and that troops felt “their hands were tied.”
The Prime Minister’s Office said on Monday night that Netanyahu, Katz, the IDF chief of staff and Northern Command commander had spoken, and stressed that the army would continue to act decisively against threats, destroy terrorist infrastructure and maintain Israel’s security belt in southern Lebanon. The statement said Israel’s civilians and soldiers would remain the top priority. The tensions also came as U.S. officials were pressed on whether Washington was demanding a full Israeli withdrawal from southern Lebanon, with Vice President J.D. Vance avoiding a direct answer, while President Donald Trump said he could “solve problems fast,” including with “Bibi.”
