If Rockets Come from Lebanon, Why Should Israel Care Who Fired Them?

In a June 21, 2026 interview on Channel 14, Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir declared:

Lebanon, all of Lebanon, should become our playground. All of Lebanon should be our target. And they tell me, ‘Wait a second, there is Lebanon and there is Hezbollah.’ I do not accept this artificial approach.

Lebanon, all of Lebanon, should become our playground. All of Lebanon should be our target.

And they tell me, ‘Wait a second, there is Lebanon and there is Hezbollah.’

I do not accept this artificial approach.

His remarks were widely condemned.

Many news reports portrayed the statement as extreme because it allegedly blurred the distinction between Lebanon and Hezbollah. Some commentators argued that such rhetoric validates Hezbollah’s narrative that the organization is inseparable from the Lebanese state.

Yet I find myself agreeing with the core principle underlying Ben-Gvir’s statement.

Not because I believe Lebanon and Hezbollah are literally the same entity.

Rather, because I do not believe the distinction is particularly relevant to the question of responsibility.

The real question is simple:

Why should Israel care?

Why should Israel care whether the rockets were launched by Hezbollah, a militia, a political movement, a revolutionary guard, a tribal army, or some other armed organization?

The only reason Israel should care about Hezbollah’s identity is the same reason every nation studies its adversaries:........

© The Times of Israel (Blogs)