Israel on Tuesday expanded its stated goals of the war in Gaza to include enabling residents to return to communities in northern Israel that have been evacuated due to attacks by Iran-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon.
The decision was approved during an overnight meeting of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's security cabinet, Netanyahu's office said.
Hamas' Oct. 7 assault on southern Israel sparked the war in Gaza. Hezbollah opened a second front against Israel a day later and fighting across the Israel-Lebanon border has since escalated, threatening to ignite a regional conflict.
Tens of thousands of Israelis were evacuated from towns along the northern frontier that have been badly damaged by rocket fire and they have yet to return.
Israel's defense minister said on Monday: "The possibility for an agreement is running out as Hezbollah continues to 'tie itself' to Hamas, and refuses to end the conflict. Therefore, the only way left to ensure the return of Israel's northern communities to their homes will be via military action."
On Monday, White House senior adviser Amos Hochstein told Netanyahu and other Israeli officials that intensifying the conflict with Hezbollah would not help achieve the goal of getting Israelis back in their homes, according to a US official.
The official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity due to lack of authorization to discuss the private talks, said Hochstein stressed to Netanyahu during Monday’s talks that he risked sparking a broad and protracted regional conflict if he moved forward with a full-scale war in Lebanon.
Hochstein also underscored to Israeli officials that the Biden administration remained committed to finding a diplomatic solution to the tensions on Israel’s northern border in conjunction with a Gaza deal or on its own, the official said.
Netanyahu told Hochstein that it would "not be possible to return our residents without a fundamental change in the security situation in the north."
The prime minister said Israel "appreciates and respects" US support but "will do what is necessary to maintain its security and return the residents of the north to their homes safely."