Israel sets new war goal, reinforcing signs of military action by Hezbollah

Israel has a new war aim, adding to signs that the conflict could soon spread to the north of the country. Israel has warned the US that “military action” is likely the only way to counter increasing hostilities with the Iran-backed militant Hezbollah group.

Amid growing fears of a larger regional war, Israel's domestic intelligence agency Shin Bet said on Tuesday it had foiled a Hezbollah plan to kill a former senior official in Israel's security apparatus.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office announced late Monday that the security cabinet had updated its list of war objectives to include the safe return of residents displaced from their homes near Israel's northern border with Lebanon due to months of fighting with Hezbollah.

“Israel will continue to take measures to implement this goal,” the Prime Minister’s Office said.

At a meeting the same day with Amos Hochstein, a senior adviser to President Joe Biden, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said the only way to achieve that goal was “through military action.”

Gallant stressed that the possibility of an agreement to avoid escalation with Hezbollah had been exhausted because the militant group continued to “forge ties” with Hamas, his office said in a statement.

It was further stated that the Defense Minister and a number of other high-ranking representatives of the Israel Defense Forces presented Hochstein with “the operations of the Israeli Defense Forces against the forces of Hezbollah.”

Gallant's warning came at a time when the defense minister himself appeared to be under increasing pressure to take a tougher stance on Israel's actions in the north. Media speculation swirled that Netanyahu was on the verge of firing him, amid fierce criticism from the right-wing ministers on whom his fragile coalition relies.

“For many months I have been calling on Prime Minister Netanyahu to fire Gallant, and now is the time to do so immediately,” right-wing Israeli Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir said in a post on X on Monday. “A decision must be made in the north, and Gallant is not the right man to lead it.”

Israeli media reports said Netanyahu had considered replacing Gallant with New Hope chairman Gideon Sa'ar, who has been a strong critic of the government's handling of Israel's offensive in Gaza, but the prime minister's office told NBC News on Monday that he would not do so. that reports of any negotiations with Sa'ar were “inaccurate”.

An Israeli official told NBC News that one obstacle to a potential agreement with Sa'ar is opposition from Netanyahu's wife, Sara Netanyahu. Netanyahu's office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

It is “clear that the drums of war are beating” for a larger regional conflict, while Netanyahu “faces increasing pressure from his coalition partners and center-right supporters to restore calm in the northern region,” former Israeli intelligence official and negotiator Avi Melamed said in an analysis seen by NBC News.

The United States has repeatedly expressed fears that an expanded military operation by its ally could trigger a larger regional war.

According to a Pentagon report, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin warned in a phone call with Gallant on Sunday of the “devastating consequences that an escalation would have for the people of Israel, Lebanon and the wider region.”

On Tuesday, the Shin Bet said it had prevented an assassination attempt on a former high-ranking official in Israel's security apparatus that was “scheduled to take place in the coming days.”

The former senior official was not named, but agents said they had discovered a Claymore device equipped with a remote activation mechanism, a camera and cellular technology that Hezbollah could use to activate it from Lebanon.

Hezbollah did not immediately respond to the allegation, and NBC News has not independently verified the claims.

Israel and Hezbollah have been carrying out regular attacks in the Gaza Strip since the start of the Israeli offensive, causing thousands of people to flee on both sides of the border. The attacks followed the terrorist attacks by Hamas on October 7. According to Israeli authorities, around 1,200 people were killed in the attacks and around 250 were taken hostage.

According to local health authorities, more than 41,000 people were killed and thousands more injured in the Israeli attack on the Palestinian enclave.

United Nations human rights experts on Monday condemned Western nations for their continued support for Israel.

“The suffering is unimaginable and the world remains silent,” said Francesca Albanese, UN Special Rapporteur for human rights.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken is traveling to Egypt to keep hopes alive for a ceasefire, but Washington has publicly expressed frustration with the behavior of its close ally, citing Israeli attacks on schools and humanitarian workers in Gaza.

“The Israel Defense Forces are a professional army and know exactly how to ensure that such incidents do not occur,” said US Ambassador to the United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield.