Netanyahu: Our objective is Israelis’ return to the north

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced Tuesday that the country's official war goals now include the return of residents to Israel's far north, the area where the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) have been exchanging cross-border fire with Hamas ally Hezbollahin Lebanon.

"The political-security Cabinet updated the goals of the war this evening, so that they include the following section: the safe return of the residents of the north to their homes," Netanyahu's office said in a statement.

Israeli forces and the Iran-backed Hezbollah have exchanged near-daily strikes since Hamas' October 7 attack sparked war in Gaza.

The fighting between both sides resulted in tens of thousands of people fleeing their homes.

While Hezbollah officials said the fighting would stop should a cease-fire in Gaza be reached, Israel says it cannot allow militants to threaten its territory from Lebanon's south.

Hezbollah is an Iran-backed Shiite political party and militant group in Lebanon. The group is considered a terrorist organization by the US, Germany and several Sunni Arab countries, while the EU lists its armed wing as a terrorist group.