Israel Eyes Permanent Control Up to Litani River, Hezbollah Warns of Escalation

• Israel declares intent to seize and hold a significant stretch of Lebanese territory, establishing a permanent 'defensive buffer zone' up to the Litani River.
• Defense Minister Israel Katz frames the move as a defensive compulsion, comparing it to Israel's approach in Gaza.
• Hezbollah warns that any such move would be an "existential threat" to Lebanon, vowing to confront the aggression.
• Israel has already destroyed five bridges over the Litani and demolished homes in Lebanese villages near the border.
• Lebanon expels Iran's ambassador, though the government has not publicly responded to Israel's territorial declaration.