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"Israel's Defence Minister Israel Katz said on Tuesday that there would be 'no quiet in Beirut' if attacks on northern Israeli communities continue, warning that military operations against Hezbollah would persist until the group is disarmed. "There will no longer be a situation of quiet in Beirut and attacked Israeli settlements," Katz said at a Defence Export Conference. "If Israeli settlements continue to be attacked, we will attack most of the Shiite Dahiyeh in Beirut." Katz added that the United States has been informed of Israel's retaliation policy in advance, saying Washington conveyed the message to Lebanese authorities and other relevant parties. "The United States endorsed this principle," he noted. "The Israeli settlements, against Beirut. There will be no quiet here, there will be no quiet there." The Defence Minister also claimed that Israeli evacuation warnings issued before potential strikes had prompted hundreds of thousands of residents to leave Beirut's southern suburbs. "The immediate result was the evacuation of hundreds of thousands of residents from most of Dahiyeh. [...] 600,000 out of 950,000 Dahiyeh residents were evacuated by yesterday, creating heavy pressure on Hezbollah and the Lebanese government," he said. Katz stressed that IDF operations inside Lebanon would continue regardless of ongoing diplomatic efforts, emphasising that the long-term objective remains the dismantling of Hezbollah's military capabilities. "Within Lebanon, there is no ceasefire, and the IDF continues operations against Hezbollah, with the ultimate goal, long-term, of dismantling Hezbollah of its weapons, and the immediate goal [...] is the disarmament of the entire Litani area beyond the Yellow Line," he asserted. This comes a day after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he had ordered attacks on Hezbollah targets in Beirut's southern suburbs in response to 'ceasefire violations'. However, he appeared to back down following a phone call with Donald Trump on Monday, with some reports suggesting Trump had called Netanyahu 'f***ing crazy'. Trump described it as a 'very productive' call, stating in a post on Truth Social: "There will be no Troops going to Beirut, and any Troops that are on their way, have already been turned back. Likewise, through highly placed Representatives, I had a very good call with Hezbollah, and they agreed that all shooting will stop - That Israel will not attack them, and they will not attack Israel." President Trump announced a 10-day ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon on April 15. The truce was later extended for three weeks following talks hosted by Washington, before another 45-day extension was announced in mid-May. US-mediated negotiations are still ongoing."
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