Israeli Ambassador to the United States Yechiel Leiter shared an emotional message to the Lebanese people on Sunday, explaining Israel's position in the fight against Hezbollah.
In the message, conveyed through the This is Beirut media platform, Leiter specifically addresses the Shiite population of Lebanon and declared, "We are not your enemy."
According to the Ambassador, "You are undergoing a tragedy, and I feel your pain, and I think Israelis feel your pain. But we are not the cause of your pain; Hezbollah is."
"We don't have a gripe with you. We don't have any issues with you. We have issues with Iran and its proxies, and you're being held hostage to Iranian goals," he continued, noting a statement by the Supreme Leader according to which "the years of the Zionist entity are nearing their end."
Leiter explained that "if you have someone like that working to destroy us constantly, we have to fight back."
This being said, he added, tearfully: "We're sorry, we really are sorry, and in pain that it's on your back. But we didn't put this on your back, Hezbollah did. Iran did. Shake off Hezbollah, shake off Iran, and you're going to find that you're going to have no better neighbors than the people of Israel, because all we want to do is live with you in peace."