(MENAFN- Live Mint) Amid escalating tensions between Israel and Lebanon's Hezbollah , Israeli leader Benjamin Netanyahu on Friday said that his country wants peace and is forced to defend itself on war fronts organized by Iran.
"If you strike us, we will strike you," said Netanyahu during his address to world leaders at the UN at a pivotal moment in the Mideast.
Netanyahu said that he was not intending to come and address, however, he came to set the record straight after hearing the 'lies' and 'slanders' levelled against his country by many of the speakers at the UN podium.
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The Israel leader stated that his country is seeking peace despite fighting for its life in the face of 'savage enemies' who want its annihilation.
"My country is at war, fighting for its life," the Prime Minister said, adding, "We must defend ourselves against these savage murderers. Our enemies seek not only to destroy us, they seek to destroy our common civilization and return all of us to a dark age of tyranny and terror."
"This war can come to an end now. All that has to happen is for Hamas to surrender, lay down its arms and release all the hostages...If Hamas stays in power in Gaza , it will regroup, rearm and attack Israel again. So Hamas has got to go. Israel will fight "until we achieve total victory" if Hamas does not surrender," Netanyahu said.
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Netanyahu also warned Iran that Israel will strike if it is hit first, and warned that his country can reach any part of the cleric-run state as he vowed to fight on in Gaza.
However, he said that they don't want to see a single person, a single innocent person, die.
Netanyahu also told the UN that Israel will no longer tolerate daily Hezbollah rocket fire .
"As long as Hezbollah chooses the path of war, Israel has no choice, and Israel has every right to remove this threat and return our citizens to their home safe...We'll continue degrading Hezbollah until all our objectives are met," Netanyahu told the UN General Assembly.
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“Just imagine if terrorists turned El Paso and San Diego into ghost towns ... How long would the American government tolerate that?" he said, shaking his fist in emphasis.“Yet Israel has been tolerating this intolerable situation for almost a year. Well, I've come here today to say: Enough is enough,” AP quoted Netanyahu as saying.
“We are defending ourselves, but we are also defending you against a common enemy that through violence and terror seeks to destroy our way of life,” the Prime Minister added.
Israel has turned its attention to the border with Lebanon , where it is targeting Hezbollah militants.
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