Ceasefire? What ceasefire? That was pretty much the message IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir delivered to soldiers stationed in southern Lebanon Wednesday. He declared that there is “no ceasefire,” because the two sides have continued to fire at each other — definitionally the opposite of “ceasefire” — throughout the supposed truce.

The ceasefire, brokered by the United States, began on April 17. On April 24, President Donald Trump extended it for three more weeks. But Israel has pushed for the freedom to take more action against Hezbollah rocket fire and a two-week time limit for a peace deal between Lebanon and Israel, fearing that refraining from major action will weaken its power of deterrence.

Zamir’s announcement, in which he thumbed his nose at the idea that a ceasefire is actually in place, came while the United States was mediating talks between Israel and Lebanon.

The army’s chief of staff said that Israel “will not tolerate” attacks from Hezbollah, and he vowed that the IDF will remain stationed in the southern Lebanon buffer zone until the threat to Israelis in the northern communities has been removed.

“In Lebanon, the mission assigned to us by the political echelon is to position ourselves along the line to prevent direct fire on the communities,” Zamir said. “We have achieved this; this is the line we are on. We may be required to remain on it. We will not tolerate attacks and fire on our communities, and we will not leave until long-term security for the northern communities is ensured.”

“On the combat front, there is no ceasefire; you continue to fight, to remove direct and indirect threats from the northern communities, to thwart terror infrastructure, to locate and kill terrorists,” he declared.

“Any threat, anywhere, to our communities or our forces, including beyond the Yellow Line and north of the Litani [River], will be removed,” he added. “Your mission and duty are to act with freedom of action and remove any threat.”

During his visit, the IDF continued striking Hezbollah targets in southern Lebanon.

According to an unnamed Israeli source, Trump is less than enthused about the Israeli request to engage in a more forceful campaign against Hezbollah. The source said that the president told Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in a phone call Wednesday that Israel should “restrain itself” and not “take actions that could jeopardize the ceasefire.”