Katz threatens: 'Naim Qassem will pay with his head'

BEIRUT — Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz on Tuesday threatened Hezbollah, saying Israel’s goal of dismantling the party is still ongoing despite a fragile cease-fire, according to remarks reported by Ynet and The Times of Israel.

Speaking at an official ceremony on Mount Herzl in Jerusalem marking Israel’s Memorial Day, Katz said Hezbollah Secretary-General Naim Qassem “will pay with his head” if the group attacks Israel again.

“Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and I instructed the Israeli army to act with full force, even during the ceasefire, to protect our soldiers in Lebanon from any threat,” Katz said. “Our commitment to the residents of the north remains unequivocal: to bring security. This is how we will act regarding high-trajectory fire from north of the Litani and throughout Lebanon."

He added that Israel would also act against threats north of the Litani River in Lebanon.

Katz accused former Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah of having “destroyed the Shiite community in Lebanon,” and warned that Qassem would meet a similar fate.

He said Hezbollah would face losses of homes and territory — “as Hamas did in Rafah and Beit Hanoun in Gaza,”