Tstriking Hezbollah “with full force” and will not stop until its goals are achieved. Netanyahu spoke as he landed in New York to attend the annual UN General Assembly meeting and as US and European officials were pressing for a 21-day halt in fighting between Israel and Lebanon’s Hezbollah to give time for negotiations.

Netanyahu said Israel’s “policy is clear. We are continuing to strike Hezbollah with full force. And we will not stop until we reach all our goals, chief among them the return of the residents of the north securely to their homes”. Israeli leaders are determined to stop over 11 months of cross-border fire by the militant group into Israel, which has forced the evacuation of tens of thousands of Israelis from communities in the north.