Israel’s highest-ranking military official declared Friday that the nation continues active warfare against Hezbollah, despite upcoming diplomatic discussions announced by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Lieutenant General Eyal Zamir, the Israel Defense Forces Chief of Staff, addressed military commanders near Bint Jbeil in southern Lebanon, stressing that combat missions are still underway. “The IDF is in a state of war. We are not in a ceasefire, we continue to fight here in this sector, this is our main combat sector,” he said. “We are in all the places. Just as we are in Gaza, just as we are in Syria – we are also here in Lebanon.”
Fighting persisted on Friday despite Netanyahu’s Thursday announcement that direct negotiations would commence “as soon as possible.” Israeli officials clarified these talks would proceed “under fire” rather than following a traditional ceasefire arrangement.
Warning sirens sounded in the Ashdod region Friday after missiles and rockets were fired from Lebanon. Similar alerts were activated in Kiryat Shmona as military operations expanded across several areas.
Power failures affected northern Israel Friday morning after a high-voltage electrical line sustained damage, according to Israeli news outlets. Reports suggest rocket fragments may have caused the infrastructure damage.
The Israeli military issued warnings about Hezbollah’s tactics involving civilian resources. Colonel Avichay Adraee, the IDF’s Arabic spokesperson, posted on X Friday demanding Hezbollah cease using ambulances in their operations. He cautioned that “if this conduct is not halted, Israel will act in accordance with international law against any military activity carried out by the terrorist Hezbollah using those facilities and ambulances.”
According to CBS News reporting from multiple diplomatic sources, ceasefire negotiations have experienced significant changes. The network reported that President Donald Trump initially supported including Lebanon in ceasefire arrangements, which Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif had also confirmed.
A White House representative told CBS that Israel had accepted the Pakistan-brokered ceasefire conditions when they became effective, but American policy shifted after a telephone conversation between Trump and Netanyahu.
