Netanyahu: Erdogan and Hezbollah Want Me Gone Because They Know We Will Strike Them

Benjamin Netanyahu used a Sunday interview on Israel’s Channel 14 to issue a direct warning to Turkey and Hezbollah, saying both want him removed because they expect Israel to strike them.

The Israeli prime minister said, "Erdogan says: ‘Netanyahu must fall,’ Naim Qassem, the leader of Hezbollah, says: ‘Netanyahu must fall.’ Why do they say this? Because they understand that we will strike them. We will complete the job."

“

Erdogan says: ‘Netanyahu must fall,’ Naim Qassem, the leader of Hezbollah, says: ‘Netanyahu must fall.’ Why do they say this? Because they understand that we will strike them. We will complete the job.

Netanyahu presented his government’s foreign policy as necessary for Israel’s survival. He said the country could be surrounded and prevented from operating on the wider international stage. An Israeli prime minister, he argued, must act globally to protect the state’s future, stop its enemies from rearming and prevent new adversaries, including Turkey, from emerging.

“

The threat has not disappeared.

He also returned to Iran, an issue he said he had addressed for almost 40 years. Netanyahu claimed Iran had not abandoned its nuclear program and intended to revive it to produce atomic bombs. "The threat has not disappeared," he said, adding that he had already prevented Iran from renewing the program once and would do so again while he remained in office.

Netanyahu described Iran as weaker than before and said he was committed to subduing its regime. He said Israel still had missions to complete in Gaza, Lebanon and Syria, while identifying Turkey as a new threat. He added that his opponents would leave Lebanon and Gaza if they won power, continuing his argument that a strong government was needed to pursue the campaign.

“

I will subdue this regime. I am committed to it. It is feasible. They are much weaker than they were. They are on shaky ground.