United States President Joe Biden's administration is facing internal pressure as Israel signaled expanding its war against Hamas in Gaza to include fighting the Hezbollah terrorist group in Lebanon.
For the past three months, Jerusalem has been in a conflict with Hamas over the massacre of Israeli civilians on Oct. 7, 2023. Since then, Lebanon-based Hezbollah and Israel have exchanged fire across the border separating the two nations.
Israel Signals Expansion of War Effort to Lebanon
Israel has steadily grown restive as multiple northern communities are targeted by attacks from its opponents. In a statement on Friday, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said that they prefer the path of an agreed-upon diplomatic settlement. He added that they are now getting close to the point where the hourglass will "turn over."
In a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, Israeli Cabinet Minister Benny Gantz indicated that the Middle Eastern nation will make northern Israel safe for its citizens, one way or another. He added that the reality was that the citizens of Northern Israel are not able to return to their homes, which is something that requires an urgent solution, as per the Western Journal.
Gantz said that the world needs to remember that it was the terrorist group Hezbollah that initiated the escalation with Israel. He noted that his nation is interested in a diplomatic solution but argued that if one cannot be found, then Israel and the IDF will remove the threat.
The Israeli official added that all of the War Cabinet's members share the same view and noted that the only consideration is Israel's security and nothing else. He argued that it is their duty to their nation and to their people.
In response to the development, the Biden administration is hoping that it can help contain the fighting and prevent it from expanding elsewhere. This comes at a time when at least two administration officials have quit in protest of the Democratic president's support for Israel.
American officials have been growing increasingly concerned that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu could order the expansion of his war effort to Lebanon soon. They argue that the latter may see it as key to his political survival, according to the Washington Post.
Ongoing Gaza Conflict
This comes as Netanyahu is facing domestic criticism of his government's failure to prevent the Hamas militant group's attack on Oct. 7, 2023. That particular assault resulted in the death of roughly 1,200 people and had roughly 240 others end up being hostages.
The Biden administration has, in private conversations, warned Israel against a significant escalation in Lebanon. It argued that if such a development were to happen, it would be difficult for the IDF to succeed, citing a new secret assessment from the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA).
The situation comes as on Saturday, air raid sirens sounded across northern Israel as Hezbollah said that it fired rockets at the Middle Eastern nation. In response, Jerusalem said that it struck a "terrorist cell."
In Gaza, fighting raged on, particularly in and near the southern city of Khan Younis. It is an area where the Israeli military said that it successfully killed three members of Hamas, which rules the densely populated coastal strip, said Reuters.
