Netanyahu says Iran no longer the same after US-Israeli assault
In his first press conference since the start of the war, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has claimed Iran is no longer the same after nearly two weeks of joint US-Israeli attacks and has suffered blows to its elite forces, reports Reuters.
Netanyahu said he spoke with Trump nearly every day and that the two men spoke “openly.”
He also said Hezbollah will pay a heavy price for its aggression.
Full text of Netanyahu’s speech:
We have achieved tremendous accomplishments, achievements that are changing the balance of power in the Middle East and beyond.
These achievements establish Israel’s position as a power stronger than ever before.
And this dramatic change in our power versus the power of our enemies is the key to ensuring our existence.
Threats come and threats go. But when we become a regional power, and in certain areas a global power, we have the ability to ward off dangers from ourselves and secure our future.
In 1993, I published an article in one of the newspapers and wrote: The greatest danger to Israel’s existence is not found in the Arab countries, it is found in Iran.
Since then, for over 30 years, the murderous ayatollah regime has indeed acted to harm the United States and the West, but first and foremost it has acted to advance its plan to destroy Israel.
It did this on three fronts: First, it built an axis of evil with the terrorist armies of Hezbollah, Hamas, the Houthis, the Assad regime, and others.
The second front, it acted to establish an arsenal of tens of thousands of deadly ballistic missiles.
And the third front, it acted to develop atomic bombs with the declared goal: to wipe us off the face of the earth. Well, he won’t do that.
As Prime Minister of Israel, I have led many overt and covert operations that delayed Iran and eroded its capabilities.
But the time for reckoning came, we built – our military capabilities, our technological capabilities, our diplomatic capabilities – to strike Iran with force and ward off threats from ourselves.
All efforts converged in the War of Rebirth, in Operation “Im Kalbi” (With My People), and now in “Roar of the Lion”.
In the War of Rebirth, we severely hit the axis of evil. It’s still there, but its capabilities are greatly diminished.
We are committed to completing the work, bringing security to all citizens of Israel, and especially to the residents of the north, just as we are doing and will continue to do for the residents of the south.
Hezbollah feels the weight of our hand. It will feel it even more. It will pay a very heavy price for its aggression.
In Operation “Im Kalbi”, we also paved the way for a comprehensive strike on Iran’s massive missile arsenal, as well as its factories for producing additional missiles.
We did the same regarding its nuclear project, including a severe blow to senior Iranian scientists. They who led the development of the atom bombs intended to destroy us – they are no more.
And by the way, we hit several others, now after “Im Kalbi”.
President Trump and I warned the dictator Khamenei, we told him: If you try to rebuild your death industries, we will strike you with a force you have never known.
Not only did he not listen to us, he began an accelerated action to renew the nuclear and missile program, and this time to hide them deep, deep underground, under high mountains.
If we had not acted immediately, within a few months, Iran’s death industry would have been immune to any strike.
Therefore, the United States and Israel together embarked on a campaign to continue what we did in “Im Kalbi”: to prevent Iran from developing nuclear weapons, to prevent Iran from developing ballistic missiles that threaten Israel, the United States, and the entire world. This is our goal.
Within a short time, we eliminated the supreme leader, as well as many senior officials of the terrorist regime. We eliminated the old dictator, and the new dictator, Moshteba, the puppet of the Revolutionary Guards – he cannot show his face in public.
We are destroying the nuclear infrastructure, the missile and launcher system, the repression headquarters, the regime’s power centers, and many, many other targets.
And in parallel, we are working to advance another goal: to create the conditions for the Iranian people to be able to remove the cruel murderous regime that has tyrannized them for nearly half a century.
We are landing crushing blows on the Revolutionary Guards and the Basij, both on the streets and in their warehouses. And our hand is still raised.
I say to the Iranian people: The moment when you can embark on a new path of freedom – that moment is drawing closer and closer. We stand by your side, we are helping you. But at the end of the day, it’s up to you. It’s in your hands.
Already now, it can be said with certainty: This is no longer the same Iran. This is no longer the same Middle East. And this is no longer the same Israel.
We don’t wait, we initiate, we attack, and we do so with unprecedented force.
We have created an unparalleled alliance with the United States, an alliance with our great friend, my personal friend, President Trump. We speak almost every day, speak openly from the heart, are coordinated, exchange ideas, consult, and decide together.
President Trump told me something I want to share with you, he told me this about an hour ago: Our relationship is 100 times stronger than all the relationships that have ever existed between an American president and an Israeli prime minister.
We don’t think only about our countries, only about this generation. We think also about future generations, about the future of humanity.
These days, I and my people are forging additional alliances with countries in the region, alliances that until a few weeks ago seemed imaginary. And we are doing all this thanks to the immense power we have built, thanks to the immense heroism of our commanders and fighters, and thanks to the ongoing spirit of the nation – you, the citizens of Israel.
I know you are following the Home Front Command instructions, you enter the protected spaces time and again. I know it’s not easy. I know it’s very difficult right now in the north.
But by following these instructions, you not only save lives, but also give me, the Government of Israel, the IDF, and the security forces, the backing and the patience needed to achieve the campaign’s objectives.
President Trump told me in amazement: “Only in Israel are rescue flights reversed. Everywhere in the world they want to flee combat zones, and only with you in Israel everyone wants to return. Where does this spirit come from?” – he always asks me.
And I answer him: This is the secret of our success. This is the resilience of our people. This is the power of our faith – faith in the eternity of Israel.
Questions.
Reporter: Hello, Mr. Prime Minister. Question: Im Kalbi was a victory, and six months after it we are in another round. In your assessment, after the “Roar of the Lion”, will there not be another round in the foreseeable future? And sir, what will be defined as victory from your perspective? Is the fall of the regime the definition of victory?
Prime Minister: First of all, I defined the objectives in the clearest way. We come to deal a fatal blow to the nuclear program and also to the missile program, to push them underground, to a place where they cannot harm us. These objectives we will achieve.
I added another goal, and that is to create the conditions for the Iranian people to truly remove this terrible murderous regime from themselves. To create the conditions – that doesn’t guarantee it will happen. And I told them now, in the words I said just a minute ago: It’s up to you. You can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make it drink. We will create the optimal conditions to do this, including strikes from the air, as we did yesterday, as we are doing these days, to try to give them the necessary space to take to the streets.
But these are our goals. In parallel, we are destroying this regime to a pulp. There’s no other way to describe it.
Now, in “Im Kalbi”, our goal was to push them away from the very close realization of developing nuclear weapons and also infrastructure for creating tens of thousands of missiles. That we did.
They could have continued doing this, of course. But we hoped that Khamenei, who is no longer with us, would heed the threats that President Trump and I gave him. He did not heed, therefore we acted. We proved we are very serious. We will not allow them to develop existential threats against the State of Israel and very severe threats against the United States and the West. We are acting.
Reporter: Mr. Prime Minister, success in the campaign, God willing. First you said that the new supreme leader cannot show his face in public. I ask: What will be his fate, and also the fate of Naim Qassem who cooperates with him? Also, what about the nuclear stockpiles that we haven’t heard enough about? What will be the fate of the enriched uranium that Iran has already managed to stockpile?
Prime Minister: I wouldn’t issue life insurance policies to any of the leaders of terrorist organizations, Iran is their terror patron. And I don’t intend to give here a precise report on what we are planning and what we will do. Regarding the nuclear program, we struck the nuclear infrastructure. I also said we eliminated another senior, very important scientist. You asked what will happen to them? I gave my answer to that.
I think there will be many surprises. Even in this press conference, I am required to maintain the fog of war. I cannot share with you all our plans, all the things we are already implementing. But I can say that our hand is on top, far beyond what we expected, and we intend to achieve all the goals, God willing.
Reporter: Hello, Mr. Prime Minister. You said after the previous campaign that the State of Israel would not allow Hezbollah to rebuild its power and threaten the residents of the north, and that we pushed Hezbollah back 20 years. Could it be that you should have conveyed to the public, certainly to the residents of the north, this message less with slogans and more with a realistic perspective? They experience this reality firsthand more than all of us.
And a second question with your permission: Do you also share President Trump’s statement that President Herzog is a “disgrace”, and do you support the calls to impose sanctions on the president? Thank you very much.
Prime Minister: You got two, I’ll answer both questions. First of all, my heart is with the residents of the north. I heard Hakli and Weinstein, four generations in Metula, and you see the immense effort, the great distress. And we will not abandon him. We will not abandon Metula, we will not abandon the residents of the north. We will act with good sense and with great force to remove the threat.
Now I want to tell you something. In the previous campaign, I said we removed a huge threat, not only from the residents of the north, but from the State of Israel. I remind you, all those who say “but Hezbollah is still firing” – we were talking then about 150 thousand rockets and missiles. We were talking about the destruction of towers in Tel Aviv, ruins in Gush Dan and other places. We were talking about 15 to 20 thousand casualties. All of this did not materialize because we landed a massive blow on them.
But that doesn’t mean they have no remaining launch capability. They have remaining launch capability. We will deal with that too. How will we deal with it? What will we do in Lebanon? I promise you we are holding very serious discussions, not discussions for the sake of discussions, but discussions for action. And again, I don’t intend to reveal that.
But one thing must be understood: Threats come and threats go. But we are increasing our power so much. Compared to what was here – we were under the nuclear threat of Iran, we were under the threat of tens of thousands of ballistic missiles, which would have taken many lives from us. We were under the threat of the Hezbollah terrorist organization, the most frightening terrorist threat in the world.
And you cannot compare either the Iran of today to what it was, nor the Hezbollah of today to what it was. And I tell you: Tomorrow they will be even weaker. Both Iran and Hezbollah. And God willing, we will bring about an even deeper change.
We are changing, as I promised, the Middle East. Both vis-à-vis enemies and vis-à-vis friends. Israel is stronger than ever. Everyone understands that. The whole world understands that. Our neighbors understand that. Both friends and enemies.
He asked me also about President Herzog. I do not intend to comment on the words of this or that American president. And I am surprised: You didn’t ask this question when President Biden said what he said about the judicial reform.
Presidents in the United States are entitled to say what is on their hearts. What is on President Trump’s heart, I know, many who sit with me in conversations with him hear it. It comes from him because he thinks there is justice here. He thinks there is truly a political trial here, a trial that should have been closed from the outset, and certainly should have been closed after all these terrible things were revealed: extortion by threats of witnesses, transfers, fabrication of protocols, forgeries, threats to destroy families, all this terrible extortion, use of spyware on Israeli citizens by the thousands.
This is not legal. You know this is precisely a violation of the law. This should have been closed. And President Trump has the right to say his piece. I am not responsible for the words he chooses, and you can certainly ask yourselves if he speaks from the depths of his heart. The answer is yes. He speaks from the depths of his heart.
Reporter: Is Israel acting to arm the Iranian opposition, and are we preparing for the scenario where the regime in Iran does not fall, because you yourself admit that this thing is not certain?
Prime Minister: I will not detail the actions we are taking. We are creating the optimal conditions for the fall of the regime. But again, I don’t deny that I cannot tell you with certainty that the Iranian people will overthrow the regime. Regimes are ultimately overthrown from within. Yes, that’s what happens in the end. But we can certainly help, and we are helping. We told them: Help is on the way. It has arrived, it’s there, and it will come even more.
What will happen in the end? I don’t want to tell you. I know what we hope for. I’m sure you hope too. We all hope for the outcome of the fall of this regime. And if it doesn’t fall, it will be much weaker. I hope it falls, and then the problem will be solved. But in any case, this is simply a different Iran. It no longer threatens as it once did. It’s not the giant bully that nothing can be done against, and that there’s no point uniting against. They are uniting against it now together with us, and are acting against it in open ways and other ways that will be clarified later.
In any case, I can tell you that God willing, Israel is on a much stronger path, with much greater power than ever before. And in the end, you have to understand that, yes.
I think everyone asks: “Wait, will we reach tranquility and inheritance? Will we reach the messianic era?” Then I’ll tell you: Maybe we will reach the messianic era. But it’s not going to happen next Thursday. In the life of nations, you constantly encounter new threats or old threats that resurface.
And the only way to ensure your existence, your future, your prosperity, and the alliances made with you, is to be very strong. And there is no doubt that from campaign to campaign – from the War of Rebirth to “Im Kalbi”, and now to “Roar of the Lion” – Israel emerges stronger than ever before.
On October 7th, our enemies thought this was our end. And today we are a power, at least regional. And the whole world marvels at the heroism of our soldiers, at the measure of our citizens, at our technological capabilities, at the rescue services, civil society. Everyone sees this coalescing into immense power.
And I tell you: What we have here are two things – it is the unique power and faith of the people of Israel, of the State of Israel, that come to expression and change our future. Therefore, if we start thinking in such terms, that we can secure our future because of this immense power, both spiritual and physical, this combination ensures our future. And I think this ensures us very, very good days ahead.
Reporter: Good evening, Mr. Prime Minister. First question regarding Lebanon: Can we understand if you are considering, within the framework of the discussions, also taking territory under our direct control from the State of Lebanon following Hezbollah’s violations?
And another question: Regarding what was discussed here about President Herzog, you described your close relationship with Trump, that you speak openly from the heart. So I would like to ask the Prime Minister: Did you say anything to him about the harsh things he says about President Herzog, about him being a “disgrace”, “pathetic”, “bullshitter”? Maybe you threw him a line on this issue, about how he speaks about the president of the State of Israel?
Prime Minister: Regarding Lebanon, I told the Lebanese government a few days ago: You are simply playing with fire. If you continue to let Hezbollah act contrary to your commitment to disarm it – you committed. Then take your fate into your own hands. It’s time they did it.
Now, if they don’t do it, it’s clear to you that we will do it. How will we do it? From the air, on the ground, and other things. I’m not going to elaborate here. But I promise you that we, as I said, will exact a very heavy price from Hezbollah. And it’s better for the Lebanese government to precede us, to cooperate in this move. If it doesn’t do it, it will leave us no choice but to do it in our own ways.
Regarding my conversations with President Trump, I usually speak with respect about every president, including President Herzog. I have great respect for the president. But I think this trial should be stopped. It shouldn’t be here. Not during wartime. During wartime there’s no place for this. This trial should have ended long ago. It simply should not have happened. This is a persecution trial. Everyone sees it.
You see the disintegration of the trial. You see a trial where three years ago the judges said: There is no corruption at all. So what’s left? I got a Bugs Bunny doll for my little son, and they’re investigating me for that? And I got cigars from a friend, and they’re making this trial about that, as if it were some terrible treason trial?
It’s all collapsing. And everyone sees it. Ambassadors come, ministers come, they sit there inside and say: “We can’t believe what we’re seeing. This doesn’t show us equality before the law. This shows us inequality before the law.” Because they wouldn’t do this to ordinary citizens. They wouldn’t do this if they didn’t want to bring down a government, a right-wing government led by me.
President Herzog is free to make his decision. He should not be subject to pressures. He simply needs to do the right thing. I’m talking about pressures from within no less than pressures from without. He simply needs to do the right thing. And the right thing to do today is to stop and end this absurd circus. To give the State of Israel the time, and me the time, to do what is necessary: both to defeat our enemies, and to create immense opportunities for peace, prosperity, and alliances in our region. Immense things lie before us, and I am working on them at this moment. I would like to be completely free only for this. At least, as much as I try to do every moment of the hours I am awake, and they are not many.
Reporter: Yes, Mr. Prime Minister. You definitely said earlier several times that there is no guarantee that the Iranian regime will fall. Still, would you see that as a failure of the campaign? Since when you talk about Lebanon and also about Iran, what are you essentially saying? You’re saying: “We will have to be prepared and ready for the possibility of more rounds.” We saw this also from what has transpired since “Im Kalbi”. How do you expect the public to conduct itself until now? And also, are you calling on parties to join your government, for example Benny Gantz or others?
Prime Minister: First of all, I draw immense strength from the public. The majority of the public, I must say, the majority of the public understands what we are up against. The majority of the public has patience. It has determination. It also has an understanding of the discomfort, truly the difficulty that we periodically have to go down to shelters or protected spaces. They understand that. They understand that for nearly 40 years a regime of terror arose here that came to destroy us, and we are preventing it from doing so. We are preventing it from doing so with a high hand, in a way that essentially the whole world marvels at our ability, at what we are doing.
And the thing to ask constantly is: Why are we doing this? We are doing this because we truly have the life force, this wonderful power of the people of Israel. To overcome with our spirit, with our willingness, to understand that we will not be destroyed anymore. We will not be exiled anymore. This is our opportunity. This is the opportunity that the Holy One, blessed be He, gave us to return to our land, to renew our independence, to rebuild our army, and to judge our enemies.
And if we need to judge them time after time, we will judge them time after time. And many times, these enemies change and come and make peace with us. We now have peace relations with former enemies that are unbelievable. And you know what? It’s getting stronger and stronger. They talk to me. I have spoken with dozens of leaders, dozens of leaders during the war. I am not only busy managing the war, I am also busy managing the diplomatic campaign, a large part of which is like an iceberg under the water. You don’t see it. But they talk to me and they are full of admiration for our power, therefore they want our closeness. They want relationships they never had before.
So that’s what’s happening. You can’t say “things will end”. We live in this wild space of the Middle East. Which also has countries that aspire to progress, and there are many countries that want to take us back to the Middle Ages. We cannot say “well, we wish this was Switzerland”. You know what? Even in Switzerland it’s happening now. This barbarism of radical Islam, both Shiite and Sunni, is threatening the entire world today. We are in the heart of the Middle East.
And you can’t say “it will end”. Stop, everything is over? No. It requires more blows and more blows. But these blows weaken our enemies immensely. Maybe they don’t disappear all at once. But how can you compare? I ask you, the press, who always… Maybe you’ll ask questions about yourselves sometime? You always say “Wow, what happened? What gloom”. Look what successes we have! Look what immense achievements we have in this war!
The Iranian dictator was eliminated, who for 47 years called for our destruction. This is like some kind of Hitler rising again and now being eliminated by us. And all their senior officials rise up, and they too are eliminated. And their missile array – also eliminated. And their nuclear program, and their nuclear scientists who plotted our destruction – they too are eliminated. There are immense achievements!
And the world, the world sees our army. The world sees our people. The people also see our government. They see our ability to stand against all this and achieve these accomplishments. So I, in your place, would look at our great achievements. Also at the challenges, also at the difficulties, which I don’t ignore. I also intend to help the northern communities, with additional aid as needed, not to spare even one shekel here. And not just shekels, the entire national effort, we are doing it. We will continue to do it.
But what’s important is to understand, to believe in our power, to believe in our achievements, to believe in our potential, to believe in our spirit, to believe in our strength. That’s what I can tell you. We are in the middle of a war, and we are advancing towards our goals.
Reporter: Hello, Mr. Prime Minister. You declared that the Draft Law is the beginning of a historical process that will bring about significant enlistment of ultra-Orthodox. If so, why are you giving up on it specifically during wartime? Or is the interest only political?
And a question regarding Minister Distel-Atbaryan’s call for sanctions on the Attorney General? Do you support that call, and if not, why didn’t you disassociate yourself from it?
Prime Minister: Regarding your first question, no, we didn’t give up on anything. What we did was we set aside, temporarily, all our legislative plans, and said: “We must focus now on one thing – security.” We need to pass a security budget with tens of billions for the security budget. Otherwise, we won’t have the munitions and other things needed to advance our military plans.
The problem was that different factions, naturally, that’s how they behave in times… Usually they say: “Well, I’ll support the budget only if I get this law.” The ultra-Orthodox said: “The Draft Law as they wanted it.” And others said: “We won’t support the budget unless we get such and such reforms.”
And I approached people. First, I approached the Finance Minister and told him: “Come, let’s approach all factions together and say: ‘Put aside all these conditions. Put them aside for now. We’ll pass the budget, and then we’ll continue with legislation. Let’s pass the budget, a responsible budget, a security budget, a budget truly needed during wartime.'” And that’s exactly what they did. And I’m very proud of them. I think they acted very responsibly.
After we pass the budget, we’ll return to legislate. I hope, first of all, that the government completes its term. It’s clear to you that it’s not falling because the budget didn’t pass, because the budget is going to pass. And I hope we can complete the term of this government – that means elections on the scheduled date, in October or September.
And I also hope we succeed in passing the Draft Law, which I think is a very responsible law, as we want to pass it. A law that will bring about the enlistment of 23 thousand ultra-Orthodox within 3 and a half years. This is incomparable, this is an excellent thing. And there are many other important things there. This changes Israeli society.
So we didn’t give up on any law, and we didn’t give up on any reform. We simply set aside the conditions, and responsibly, we are passing the budget necessary for managing the war.
Reporter: Hello, sir. You said that in your estimation the government will complete its term. In about a week and a half, there will be a High Court hearing on the petition demanding the dismissal of Minister Ben Gvir. If the decision is indeed as the petitioners demand, will you comply with it, or would you perhaps advance elections?
And another question: What, in your opinion, is the purpose of the visit of President Trump’s envoy, Steve Witkoff, who is coming here next week? If in your assessment this is related to an ultimatum, that according to several publications in the American media, President Trump intends to set a deadline for the war and aim to end it?
Prime Minister: We are in a campaign for our existence and our future. I don’t believe there are forces in the State of Israel that want to create a clash of authorities now, a deep crisis. We don’t lack Iran. We don’t lack Hezbollah. We don’t lack the challenges that we are coping with and succeeding at. And now we need to get into this? I don’t believe anyone will put us in this strait. This is beyond lunacy, this is beyond madness, this is a complete loss of composure. This is not the time to do it. And it’s not the time at all to do it, in my opinion.
Okay, now regarding Steve Witkoff’s visit. I will always be happy to see him. Stop thinking in terms of “dictates”. I tell you: The relationship between me and President Trump, and the relationship we built between Israel and the United States, and the cooperation between the militaries, armies that are the best armies in the world and the best air forces in the world. This cooperation is immense. And it doesn’t work on dictates. It works in completely different ways: of dialogue, of sharing ideas, of consultation and joint work. Start thinking like that. This is true at all levels, but first and foremost between me and the president, and also between our people.
I want to tell you something else. You, the public, will forgive the journalists… I’m speaking now directly to the public, because I have a few remarks I would make about you at other times, right now I’m sparing myself and you from that. But I want to say to the public: You give immense strength. You simply reveal the spirit of Israel Saba (Grandfather Israel). You reveal the secret of why this people survived all these generations, and overcame difficulties that no people overcame. You reveal why “Eternity of Israel” is not a slogan, but a fact.
And I want to thank you. I also want to thank my wife Sarah, my family. Sarah is my pillar of life and helps me. As many of you help, you turn to me and say: “Be strong, continue to lead us, don’t break.” I am strong. I am strong because of you, because of our shared heritage. And because of my wife and my sons, who give me immense strength at an immense personal cost. I love you all. Thank you.
