Israeli army approves plans for offensive against Lebanon's Hezbollah

JERUSALEM - The Israeli military announced Tuesday that it has approved "operational plans" for an offensive against the Lebanese armed group Hezbollah.

In a statement, the military said Ori Gordin, commander of the Northern Command, and Oded Basiuk, head of the Operations Directorate, "approved the plans and held a joint situation assessment in the Northern Command" as part of preparations for the continuation of combat against Hezbollah along the Israel-Lebanon border.

The military added that "decisions were made on the continuation of increasing readiness of troops in the field".

The announcement came amid increasing tensions between the two sides, also at a time when US envoy Amos Hochstein, during his visit to Beirut, called for urgent de-escalation of confrontations on the Israel-Lebanon border.

In his meeting with Israeli leaders on Monday, Hochstein also urged relevant sides to soon resolve the conflict along the Blue Line, the border demarcation between Lebanon and Israel, via diplomatic means, which he said would serve everyone's interest and is "achievable and urgent".

Tensions along the Israel-Lebanon border escalated on Oct 8, 2023, following a barrage of rockets launched by Hezbollah toward Israel in solidarity with Hamas' attack on Israel the day before. Israel then retaliated by firing heavy artillery toward southeastern Lebanon.