Hezbollah will pay heavy price for rocket fire during Passover, Katz vows

Defense Minister Israel Katz vowed on Thursday to exact “a very heavy price” on Hezbollah for launching a barrage of rockets at Israeli civilians during the Passover meal the previous day.

Recording his message during a situational assessment at the Kirya military headquarters in Tel Aviv, Katz drew a parallel between Hezbollah attacking civilians as they sat down to celebrate the Seder night marking the Exodus of the people of Israel from Egypt, and the Amalekites, an ancient nomadic nation, which, according to the Bible, attacked the people of Israel when they left Egypt.

He directly addressed secretary-general of Hezbollah Naim Qassem, saying that he will not live to see Israel’s retribution, “because you will be deep at the bottom of hell together with [his predecessor] Hassan Nasrallah, [Iran’s slain supreme leader] Ali Khamenei, [Hamas late leader] Yahya Sinwar, and all those eliminated from the axis of evil.”

“But the terrorist organization Hezbollah, which you now lead, and its supporters in Lebanon, will pay an extremely heavy price. The fire will not deter us—the Israeli home front is strong, and the Israel Defense Forces is strong and determined, and there will be no return to the reality that existed before Oct. 7, [2023],” the defense minister continued, referring to the largely passive foreign policy of the Jewish state before the Hamas-led surprise attack on southern Israel, which devastated the communities along the Gaza border, claiming some 1,200 lives and kidnapping 251 more into the Strip.

“Your patrons in Iran are shattered and will not help you against the power of the IDF and the courage and commitment of our soldiers to bring security to the north. We will clear Hezbollah and its supporters from Southern Lebanon—with IDF security control throughout the Litani River area—and we will pull the fangs of the Hezbollah snake throughout Lebanon,” Katz pledged.

The minister went on to praise Israelis for their steadfastness and the “brave and dedicated” IDF soldiers.

“We have an amazing people and an army of lions. We will continue to strike the terrorist regime in Iran and Hezbollah in Lebanon—until all our objectives are achieved,” he added.

The situational assessment was held with Israel’s defense brass, including IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir, OC Military Intelligence Directorate Maj. Gen. Shlomi Binder, OC Operations Directorate Maj. Gen. Itzik Cohen, OC Planning Directorate Maj. Gen. Hedi Zilberman and Military Secretary to the Defense Minister Brig. Gen. Guy Markizano, according to the defense ministry’s spokesperson.

Since Israel launched its preemptive attack on Iran on Feb. 28, its Lebanese proxy group Hezbollah joined the war effort, firing hundreds of rockets into Israel.

In response, IDF ground forces have entered Southern Lebanon to clear terrorist elements adjacent to the Israeli border, pushing northward toward the Litani River to remove the threat of anti-tank missiles, mortar shells and short-range rockets from the Israeli communities located near the border.