Katz: "We Will Ensure That Iran Cannot Return to Threaten Our Citizens"

Defense Minister Israel Katz said today (Wednesday) at the National Security College graduation ceremony: "Our challenge is clear: to ensure that Iran cannot return to threaten our citizens. We must formulate an enforcement plan to prevent Iran from renewing the capabilities it had before the operation."

"Just as we were aware of the intensification of the Iranian threat and activity to obtain nuclear weapons, it was also clear to us that the moment of decision was approaching. Many factors were partners in defining the targets and building capabilities, and at the moment of truth the Cabinet, led by the Prime Minister, made the required historic decision to attack Iran.

"The decision to launch the operation would not have been made if we had not had at our disposal a clear understanding of what the IDF's operational capabilities were, with emphasis on air strike capabilities and air defense, and what was the quality of the tremendous intelligence information we had - the fruit of many years of work, and especially in recent months. We knew it is easier to make difficult decisions when you are confident you have someone to rely on."

Katz: "We must not be complacent"

"We still face difficult and complex decisions. We are at a critical point in time for Israel's security and shaping our future in the Middle East. We must not be complacent and must prepare properly for the future. In Lebanon, the maximum enforcement policy continues and proves itself. Hezbollah leaders did not join the campaign against Iran, despite being created to defend Iran, because they knew that this time the State of Israel would respond with great force. In Judea and Samaria, Operation 'Iron Wall,' which is still ongoing, brings unprecedented achievements with a decrease of more than 70% in terror alerts."

"The IDF is inside the refugee camps in northern Samaria with a clear message to terrorists in the other camps: the operation can expand at any moment, to any camp, if you raise your heads and try to harm Israeli citizens. In Syria, the IDF is on the Hermon and in the security zone to protect the residents of the Golan Heights and the Galilee from any enemy, and the IDF's presence in the area also constitutes a political asset for possible future arrangements.

"Now, after Operation 'Like a Lioness' - to ensure the many achievements it brought, our challenge is clear: to ensure that Iran cannot return to threaten our citizens. We must formulate an enforcement plan to prevent Iran from renewing the capabilities it had before the operation. We remember the Six-Day War with the great victory and after it the War of Attrition and the Yom Kippur War."

"The goal in Gaza is to return all the hostages and ensure that Hamas will not be here"

"Therefore, alongside the justified feeling of appreciation and joy over the achievement, there must also be a measure of modesty as a state and much vigilance and preparation so that we do not become complacent. The Iranians will try in every way to learn lessons and recover. The enemy learns and prepares - and our challenge is to upgrade our capabilities so that we are not surprised."

"Gentlemen, exactly a week ago I visited IDF commanders and soldiers in Gaza. I told them then what is also true today: the target before us throughout the entire maneuver in the Gaza Strip is clear - to return all the hostages and ensure that Hamas will not be here. Today too, this target has not changed and we will not relent until we realize it."

"We are committed to realizing this target with a clear understanding: Hamas's basic motivation has not changed in the last 21 months. I see every day in the intelligence material that Hamas constantly strives to return to its basic purpose - the destruction of Israel. This was true before October 7th and it is true now, when Hamas planned to help Iran realize the plan for 'Israel's destruction' part two."

Katz: "Yemen's fate is like Tehran's fate"

"An Iranian missile attack on Israel and invasion from Gaza, from Syria, from Lebanon, and from Jordan - as part of a combined attack on Israel. But thanks to our achievements - both in Gaza, and in Syria, and in Lebanon and in Iran - the ability to realize this vision of destruction has been eliminated. The Prime Minister is now leading intensive negotiations for the release of our hostages and we all strengthen his hands in his visit to Washington and pray for his success in all missions - and for the swift return of all hostages home.

"The Houthis continue to fire toward Israel and it is important to clarify well. Yemen's fate is like Tehran's fate, Israel will not allow a war of attrition against the Houthis and they will pay the full price. Graduates of Class 52, for more than 50 years the National Security College has operated at the meeting point between national security and academia, years in which the college succeeded in establishing its position as a respected and leading institution, both in Israel and overseas."

"Facing the new goals before us, which I addressed in my remarks, and facing the additional challenges to maintaining the state's security, you - graduates of the National Security College - constitute an important element in the response at our disposal. I ask to thank you, General Nimrod Aloni, and all the college staff, for professional and thorough leadership in training senior officers in the IDF, even in an especially complex and challenging period. At the end of a significant year at the college, and in light of the long years you have filled in security and political activity, we all rely on you and are confident in your success. Well done - go up and succeed!"