Netanyahu bars his defence minister from visiting US
Netanyahu says Defence Minister Gallant’s planned visit to the US tomorrow to meet his counterpart Lloyd Austin has not been approved until he speaks to President Biden first, Israeli media have reported.
Gallant’s scheduled visit to speak to Austin was expected to concern Israel’s response to Iran’s missile attack last week. However, according to Israeli news outlets, which cited sources familiar with the matter, Netanyahu spoke to Gallant this evening and said he was not approving the one-day visit.
Netanyahu also said the security cabinet must have final approval over the planned response to Iran’s attack before Gallant leaves.
Pentagon confirms Gallant’s US visit cancelled
As we reported earlier, Netanyahu has barred the Israeli defence minister from going to the US for a meeting with his counterpart Lloyd Austin.
A Pentagon spokesperson confirmed the cancellation, saying the US Defense Department looks forward to welcoming Gallant at a later date. Israeli media reported that Netanyahu decided to bar Gallant from visiting Washington on Wednesday because he wanted to speak to Biden before the visit.
Netanyahu feeling empowered in address to Lebanese citizens
It seems that Netanyahu feels emboldened and empowered. He is riding on that high of the victory he declared 24 hours ago that Israel was achieving.
In fact, he not only threatened the people of Lebanon, he incited them to fight Hezbollah. To “liberate” Lebanon from Hezbollah, a movement and party that is part of the social fabric and has elected members in parliament, represents an important component in Lebanese society.
So, that evokes or promotes thoughts and memories in the region of the Lebanese civil war, which was very bloody and very complicated because of outside intervention, including from Israel.
