Netanyahu: The Army Operates According to Israeli Calculations

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rejected reports suggesting that the United States convinced Israel not to expand its military operations. During the weekly government meeting on Sunday, Netanyahu stated, "I see misleading publications claiming that the United States prevented us and is preventing us from carrying out operations in the region." He added, "This is not true. Israel is a sovereign state. Our decisions in war are based on our operational considerations, and I will not elaborate on that," without mentioning details regarding those reports. Netanyahu emphasized on Sunday that Israel's actions "are not dictated by external pressures." He said, "The decision on how to use our forces is an independent decision of the Israel Defense Forces and not anyone else's." The Wall Street Journal had reported on Saturday that U.S. President Joe Biden convinced Netanyahu not to attack the Lebanese group Hezbollah due to concerns that it might launch an attack on Israel similar to the one carried out by the Palestinian Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) from Gaza against southern Israel.