Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu confirmed that the Israeli army will continue to remain in the “security zone” in southern Lebanon, unless Hezbollah is disarmed and its military capabilities are dismantled. He indicated that he does not trust the Lebanese government's ability to disarm Hezbollah, stressing that Israel will continue to carry out operations against Hezbollah "whenever the need arises." The Israeli Prime Minister considered that Hezbollah had become weaker than it was before, pointing out that the party possessed about 150,000 rockets and shells directed at Israel, which he described as posing a major threat to the Israeli population.