Netanyahu Says Some Lebanese Christian Villages Asked to Be Annexed by Israel

The Lebanese Ministry of Health reported that at least 4,303 people have been killed and 12,203 wounded across Lebanon since March 2. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday that some Christian villages in southern Lebanon have asked to be annexed by Israel for protection from Hezbollah.

He made the statement during an interview on Fox News's The Sunday Briefing. "Christian villages in Lebanon, some of them have actually asked to be annexed to Israel, because we protect them against the Hezbollah, Hezbollah fanatics who want to kill them, and we do the same things with Christians everywhere," Netanyahu said.

During the war the Israeli military warned several Christian-majority villages through calls to local officials not to allow "strangers" in, referring to Hezbollah fighters.

Most such villages have remained inhabited despite evacuation orders. Israel's military chief Lieutenant General Eyal Zamir visited troops near Beaufort Castle in southern Lebanon on Sunday.

Netanyahu also addressed relations with U.S. President Donald Trump. "We have an excellent relationship, which is defined, as I said, between allies. Ninety-nine percent of the time, we see eye-to-eye, but as any, in any family, in any close friendship, there are sometimes differences of opinion, and we discuss them openly," he said.

Trump told Axios a day earlier that Netanyahu "knows who the boss is" and that Netanyahu was expected to visit Washington in the coming days.