Israel widens focus of Gaza war to include Lebanon front against Hezbollah

Gaza war’s ‘second front’ across the Israel-Lebanon border has forced tens of thousands of people on both sides from their homes

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Interceptions of rockets launched from Lebanon at Israel over the border. Photo: Reuters

Published: 12:39pm, 17 Sep 2024Updated: 4:43pm, 17 Sep 2024

Israel announced the expansion of its war aims on Tuesday, widening its nearly year-long fight against Hamas in Gaza to focus on Hezbollah along its northern border with Lebanon.

The announcement came with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken due back in the region this week to try to revive stalled ceasefire talks for the war between Israeland Hamas in Gaza.

Until now, Israel’s objectives have been to crush Hamas and to bring home the hostages taken by Palestinian militants during the October 7 attacks that sparked the war.

While the focus of the war has been on Gaza, the unabating exchanges of fire between Israeli troops and Hamas ally Hezbollah in Lebanon have forced tens of thousands of people on both sides of the border to flee their homes.

A damaged residential building in Nahariya, northern Israel, after a projectiles attack from Lebanon. Photo: Reuters

“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,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said in a statement.