Israel's security cabinet has decided to expand the scope of its military tasks to include the safe return of evacuees to their homes in northern Israel—on the border with Lebanon. Israel will continue to work to achieve this goal, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office explained.

The Knesset Research and Information Center of the Israeli parliament noted that around 68,500 people continue to be evacuated from Lebanon due to Hezbollah attacks, and Israeli cities built along the northern border have sustained considerable damage from rocket fire.

Both Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have publicly announced their intention to include the return of evacuees on the official list of Israel’s war objectives. Until now, the main Israeli objectives of this war were the destruction of the Palestinian group Hamas and the return of the hostages being held in Gaza.