Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared on Sunday that Israel will continue to “do whatever is necessary” to prevent Lebanon’s Hezbollah from rebuilding its military capabilities, drawing a parallel to Israel's ongoing operations against Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

During a ministerial meeting, Netanyahu asserted Israel's right to self-defense without external approval. "Since the approval of the ceasefire, Hamas has not stopped violating it, and we are acting accordingly," he stated, according to Bloomberg.

The comments come amid a fragile ceasefire and escalating cross-border tensions. On Saturday, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) announced it had "eliminated" two Hezbollah operatives in southern Lebanon. One was identified as Kamel Reza Karnabsh, whom the IDF accused of working to rebuild Hezbollah's operational infrastructure. A second operative was killed in a separate strike in Houla, targeted for his role in the group's financial and military logistics.

Lebanon’s National News Agency (NNA) confirmed Karnabsh's death in an Israeli strike in Zawtar al-Sharqiyah, which it said also wounded 21 others. Lebanese health officials report that over 330 people have been killed and 945 wounded in the country since the ceasefire was declared last November.

The deadliest single incident since the truce took place earlier last week, when an Israeli airstrike hit the Ain al-Hilweh refugee camp, killing 13 people.

As military actions continued, a Hamas delegation arrived in Cairo on Sunday to discuss what the group calls "ongoing breaches of the ceasefire agreement." Mediators from Egypt, Qatar, and the United States are expected to meet with the delegation. The talks are also anticipated to touch on progressing toward the second phase of a U.S.-backed plan for Gaza.

Both Israel and Hezbollah continue to trade accusations over violations of the November 2024 ceasefire. Israel maintains that Hezbollah is reconstructing its military infrastructure along the border, while Lebanon accuses Israel of repeated airstrikes and of maintaining military positions inside Lebanese territory.

In a televised address on Friday, Lebanese President Joseph Aoun expressed readiness to negotiate a deal that would halt Israeli strikes and secure Israel's withdrawal from five occupied border hills. He proposed a monitoring committee involving the U.S., France, Israel, Lebanon, and the UN peacekeeping force UNIFIL to oversee the process.

The United States continues to pressure Lebanon to disarm Hezbollah, a long-standing demand that the Iranian-backed group rejects.