Israel expands war goals on Lebanon border as U.S. tries to calm tensions

In an early Tuesday announcement, Israel’s security cabinet also said it updated its war objectives to include “returning the residents of the north securely to their homes,” signaling an expansion of official aims that originally focused on eliminating Hamas and returning the hostages taken on Oct. 7.

In a separate meeting, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant told Hochstein on Monday that time is running out for an agreement with Hezbollah, as the Iran-backed Lebanese militant group continues to “tie itself” to Hamas. Since Oct. 8, Israel and Hezbollah have been exchanging near-daily cross-border fire that has displaced tens of thousands of citizens on both sides, and ratcheted up in terms of pace and scope in recent weeks. The only way to return residents to their homes is “via military action,” Gallant told Hochstein, according to a statement from Gallant’s office.

The meetings with Hochstein took place against the backdrop of flaring tensions within Israel’s government, with Netanyahu’s office swatting down rumors that he plans to replace Gallant with United Right chairman Gideon Sa’ar. Gallant has emerged as one of Netanyahu’s most vocal critics on the war, publicly pushing for a cease-fire and hostage release deal with Hamas, and warning last week that the window for any such agreement was closing. Gallant has also broken with Netanyahu over his insistence that Israeli troops remain along the Gaza-Egypt border, which has become a sticking point in the U.S.-backed cease-fire negotiations.

Israel’s far-right national security minister, Itamar Ben Gvir, said on X Monday that he had been calling on Netanyahu to fire Gallant for months. “A decision must be made about the North and Gallant is not the right man to make it,” he said in the post.

Israel’s Defense Ministry announced Monday that as part of their security efforts along the northern border, 97 rapid response units have been re-equipped and more than 9,000 rifles procured at a cost of about $13.5 million. The ministry said in a statement that the initiative — which includes providing combat and rescue gear, medical supplies and protective equipment — is “part of our policy to bolster border defense while enhancing self-reliant production capabilities.”

Here’s what else to know

Secretary of State Antony Blinken is traveling to Egypt on Tuesday, the State Department said, adding that he will “meet with Egyptian officials to discuss ongoing efforts to reach a cease-fire in Gaza that secures the release of all hostages.” He is expected to stay through Thursday.

The United States continues to work with Egypt and Qatar on a revised cease-fire proposal, but there is no timeline yet for presenting it, State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said Monday during a press briefing. “We are working expeditiously to try to develop that proposal, try to find something that would bring both the parties to say yes and to formally submit it,” he said.

The U.S. ambassador to the United Nations said that she and President Joe Biden are outraged by the death of Aysenur Eygi, a Turkish American activist whom Israeli forces acknowledged killing in the occupied West Bank. “This horrific tragedy should never have happened,” Linda Thomas-Greenfield said during a U.N. Security Council briefing Monday. “We will continue to demand details and continue to demand access into Israel’s investigation, and press for accountability.” The Israel Defense Forces said it was “very likely” that Eygi was hit “unintentionally” by one of its soldiers “during a violent riot,” but a Washington Post investigation found that Eygi was shot more than a half-hour after the height of confrontations.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian accused the United States and Israel of trying to drag his country into a regional war with the July killing of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran. “We have been restrained so far,” he said, adding, “But we reserve the right to answer at a certain time.” Iran and Hamas have accused Israel of carrying out the assassination; Israel has not commented on the attack, but informed U.S. officials immediately afterward that it was responsible.

At least 41,252 people have been killed and 95,497 injured in Gaza since the war began, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between civilians and combatants but says the majority of the dead are women and children. Israel estimates that about 1,200 people were killed in Hamas’s Oct. 7 attack on Israel, including more than 300 soldiers, and it says 342 soldiers have been killed since the launch of its military operation in Gaza.

Soroka reported from Tel Aviv, Kasulis Cho from Seoul and Hassan from London. Susannah George in Dubai contributed to this report.