Israeli PM's Claim of Christian Lebanese Support Quickly Denied

Fifteen Christian-majority towns in southern Lebanon jointly rejected Prime Minister Netanyahu's assertion that they sought Israeli annexation, which he claimed on Fox News July 5. The statement contradicts Netanyahu's framing of Israel as protector of Lebanese Christians amid Israel's occupation of six percent of Lebanese territory. Analysts view his remarks as an attempt to exploit Lebanon's sectarian divisions, where political power is divvied up by religious group.