A FAR-right Israeli minister has been condemned after declaring that "all of Lebanon must burn".
Israel's national security minister, Itamar Ben-Gvir, wrote on Twitter/X on Friday that "for every tear of an Israeli mother, a thousand Lebanese mothers must weep".
It came just hours before reports that Israel and Hezbollah agreed to renew their ceasefire.
In the Twitter/X post, which has been translated from Hebrew, Ben-Gvir wrote: "For every tear of an Israeli mother, a thousand Lebanese mothers must weep. All of Lebanon must burn!
"With all due respect to the Americans, Israel must make it clear to the entire world that the blood of our sons and the security of our citizens are not forfeit. All of Lebanon must burn. Our supreme duty is to protect the citizens of Israel and the soldiers of the IDF, and this commitment takes precedence over every other consideration."
Ben-Gvir added: "I told the Prime Minister, even in our private meetings: For every tear of an Israeli mother, a thousand Lebanese mothers must weep.
"Enough with the ping-pong. In the Middle East, you don’t win with measured responses and restraint – you need to go berserk. To obliterate. To crush the terror."
The comments were deemed in violation of rules on Twitter/X – which itself is owned by far-right trillionaire Elon Musk – yet the platform took the decision not to delete the post, believing that it is in "the public interest" that it remains accessible .
An alert which appears above the post reads: "This Post violated the X Rules. However, X has determined that it may be in the public’s interest for the Post to remain accessible."
The comments were condemned by Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper, who said: "Calling for 'all of Lebanon to burn' is a horrendous and abhorrent statement from an Israeli minister who has rightly been sanctioned by the UK Government.
"We call on both Israel and Hizballah to comply with the agreed ceasefire, and ensure that all civilians are protected."
Ben-Gvir was sanctioned by the UK Government last year, accused of inciting “extremist violence and serious abuses of Palestinian human rights".
The far-right minister previously sparked several diplomatic incidents after sharing a horrific video showing Gaza flotilla activists being brutally assaulted by his police force.
The UK Government summoned the Israeli charge d'affaires in response, while France and Poland have banned Ben-Gvir from entering their respective territories.
Earlier this year, the politician was seen brandishing a bottle of champagne in the Israeli Knesset in celebration of the passing of a death penalty law for Palestinian detainees who have been convicted as "terrorists".
