Defense Minister Yoav Gallant issued a warning to Hezbollah on Friday, saying that although Israel favors a diplomatic resolution to the tensions along the Lebanese border, the likelihood of resorting to a military option is increasingly imminent.
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"We will continue to intensify our operations across the entire sector as needed. We have one clear objective - to safely return the residents of the north to their homes," Gallant said.
"There are two alternatives here: one, a diplomatic option, which we are actively working on. Yesterday, I met with the U.S. president's special envoy Amos Hochstein. Soon, we will meet with Secretary of State Antony Blinken to discuss these options and see if we can reach understandings that will enable the safe return of the northern residents to their homes."
Gallant's comment comes on the heels of Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah's statements during a speech to supporters in Beirut in which he ruled out Lebanon-Israel land border talks to ease tensions until an ending to fighting in the Gaza Strip, countering a U.S.-led push for a demarcation deal that would also distance Hezbollah from the border.
Gallant noted that, during a visit to forces in the north, he reviewed plans from the General Staff and Northern Command, "for the possibility that we might have to undertake this action after resorting to force and military operation in the northern region in order to facilitate the return of the northern residents to their homes. I want to state clearly - we prefer the path of a diplomatic agreement reached by consensus. However, we are nearing the point where the hourglass is about to turn."
Meanwhile, fifteen rockets were fired from Lebanon into Israel Friday evening, 4 were intercepted by air defenses, 6 landed in unpopulated areas and fell short in Lebanese territory. The IDF responded with tank and artillery fire toward the sources of the rocket launches.
Incoming air raid sirens were activated in the northern city of Kiryat Shmona and the neighboring communities of Kfar Giladi and Tel Hai near the Lebanon border twice in under an hour Friday evening. Sirens also blared in the border communities of Ghajar, Maayan Baruch and Kfar Yuval.