TEL AVIV, November 6. /TASS/. Chief of the General Staff of the Israeli army Herzi Halevi has called for elaborating plans of expanding the ongoing ground operation against Hezbollah in Lebanon, the Ynet news portal said.
"Alongside the diplomatic attempt to reach agreements in Lebanon, we need to continue formulating the plans for the continuation of the fighting in Lebanon, including expanding and deepening the [ground] maneuver, and we will activate these plans as needed," Halevi said at a meeting on the operative situation after Lebanon’s two missile attacks on central Israel.
According to Halevi, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) "continues to strike Hezbollah targets according to plan in the entire region, in southern Lebanon, the Beqaa Valley, Beirut and Syria."
Israel has been delivering massive airstrikes on Hezbollah military targets in Lebanon since September 23, when it launched Operation Northern Arrows. Israel’s declared goal is to create safe conditions in the country’s northern areas so that tens of thousands of local residents could return to their homes. Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah was reportedly killed in Israel’s strike on Beirut on September 27. In the early hours of October 1, Israel announced the launch of a ground operation in Lebanon’s border areas.