Netanyahu: We Will Not Allow A Second Lebanon in Syria

Prime Minister Netanyahu spoke to soldiers of the Haredi Hashmonaim Brigade today (Tuesday. Here is the full speech:

"We are here at the Hasmonean Brigade in the Jordan Valley, the IDF's first Haredi brigade. I have now met with both the commanders and the soldiers, and it is uplifting. You see young Haredi men who come here, enlist and become excellent fighters. They have already been to Gaza and fought with distinction. Sadly, some of their friends in the Netzah Yehuda battalion fell in battle last week.

"We are fighting a great battle, and we need the forces of spirit and the military might to prevail. Here we have the spirit and the might. They come in as Haredi and they come out as Haredi — and that thing is possible. They are coming not under coercion, but willingly, and that willingness is widespread among the Haredi public. We can lead a process — not one of confrontation and infighting, but rather a mobilization of all the forces in Jewish society in order to truly bring security to our state and defend our people.

"I wish it on everyone to see what we have here, it is going to develop and grow. At once preserving the world of the Torah, which is one of the foundations of our existence for thousands of years; and enlisting thousands upon thousands of enthusiastic, strong and devoted young men.

"We are operating in Syria as well. We have a commitment to preserve the south-western region of Syria as a demilitarized area on Israel's border. We will not allow a return to the situation where a second Lebanon is being established there, and we also have an obligation to safeguard the Druze locals. We are doing that by carrying out intensive operations. I hope we won't need further operations, and that very much depends on what is understood and done, and what is not done, in Damascus."