Gallant said the country had a duty to restore security and return evacuated Israeli residents to their communities along the border, and although Israel would prefer to do this through diplomacy, it was “prepared to do this through military force,” a statement from the defense minister’s office said.
Touring the Lebanon border Friday, Gallant speculated that “as long as fighting continues in the south, there will be fighting in the north.
“But we will not accept this reality for an extended period. There will come a moment when if we do not reach a diplomatic agreement in which Hezbollah respects the right of the residents to live here in security, we will have to ensure that security by force,” he said.
Since October 8, a day after the deadly Hamas attacks on southern Israel, Hezbollah has engaged in cross-border fire on a near-daily basis, launching rockets, drones and missiles at northern Israel in a campaign it says is in support of Hamas. The attacks forced most residents several kilometers from the border to evacuate. Israel has responded with its own regular strikes on Hezbollah targets, and has warned it will not be able to tolerate the terrorists’ continued presence on the border. READ MORE
