STORY: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Monday (June 22), that Israeli forces will remain in the security zone in southern Lebanon for "as long as necessary" to protect citizens, adding that the military has unrestricted operational freedom to thwart any incoming threats.

Netanyahu emphasised that he and the defence minister have issued clear directives to the military regarding their operations across the northern border, saying he is insistent against an Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon.

A ceasefire in Lebanon held for a second day on Monday, the longest lull yet in three months of war between Hezbollah and Israel, security sources in Lebanon said, though fear it could collapse prevented displaced people from going home.

Israeli forces remain deployed deep inside southern Lebanon, occupying a self-declared security zone where they have been razing villages, saying Hezbollah has embedded itself in civilian areas.

A senior Lebanese security official said that adherence to the ceasefire had been "almost total" since Saturday (June 20) evening, though the official said an Israeli tank fired shells towards a village near Tyre and Israeli forces fired sound grenades in two other locations on Monday. An Israeli drone also flew over Beirut.

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PM Netanyahu says Israeli troops have 'full freedom of action' in Lebanon

VIDEO SHOWS: ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER BENJAMIN NETANYAHU DELIVERING STATEMENT

RESENDING WITH COMPLETE SCRIPT

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1. (SOUNDBITE)(Hebrew) ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER BENJAMIN NETANYAHU, SAYING:

“The directive from me and the Minister of Defence to the IDF (Israel Defense Forces) is clear and has not changed: Our fighters in southern Lebanon have full freedom of action to thwart any direct or emerging threat against them or against the residents of the north. The IDF has no restrictions in this matter. I stand behind them, the entire nation stands behind them. I firmly insist that we remain in the security zone in southern Lebanon for as long as necessary in order to protect the residents of the north and all citizens of the state.