Netanyahu states U.S. has no influence on Israeli military operations

The head of the Israeli government said that he had seen false publications claiming that the United States had obstructed and prevented the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) from conducting operations in the region.

"This is not true. Israel is a sovereign state. Our decisions in the war are based on our operational considerations, and I will not elaborate on that," Netanyahu said.

Earlier, the media wrote that U.S. leader Joe Biden allegedly convinced the Israeli prime minister not to attack the Hezbollah group in Lebanon, out of fear that it would carry out an attack similar to the one previously carried out by Hamas.

Netanyahu insisted that Israel's actions "are not dictated by external pressures".

"The decision on how to use our forces is an independent decision of the IDF and no one else," he said.

The war between Israel and Hamas and Hezbollah's attacks

As a reminder, on October 7, Hamas militants from the Gaza Strip attacked the south and center of Israel. Thousands of missiles and shells were fired into the country. Since then, tensions with Hezbollah have also begun to rise. There are daily clashes between the parties along the Israeli-Lebanese border.

Iranian-backed Hezbollah militants regularly fire missiles at Israeli outposts and forces on the border. On November 10, in response to the shelling of Israeli territory, the IDF launched a series of strikes on the group's military bases using mortar-guided missiles called Iron Sting.

The Israeli air defense forces also intercepted one of the planes that entered the country from Lebanon. The other two crashed.

The Times reported that Israel may launch a ground war against Hezbollah to push them back 20 kilometers from the border.