Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Galant said on Thursday that Israel should expand its stated goals in the ongoing war in Gaza to include returning Israelis to the north after being evacuated due to ongoing attacks by the Iranian-backed "Hezbollah" in Lebanon, reports Fox News, quoted by News.bg.
Galant specified that Israel's mission on the northern front is clear: "ensuring the safe return of northern communities to their homes."
"To achieve this, we must expand the objectives of this war," Gallant said, adding that he plans to raise the issue with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the cabinet.
The minister emphasized that expanding Israel's military objectives "will not diminish our absolute commitment to defeating Hamas and returning the hostages."
During a meeting with senior military personnel, Gallant reviewed Israel's achievements so far in Gaza, confirming that the goals remain the same — the destruction of "Hamas" and the return of the Israeli hostages.
At the same time, EU foreign policy and security chief Josep Borrell has started a process of asking member states if they want to impose sanctions on "some Israeli ministers."
"I initiated the procedure to ask member states whether they consider it appropriate to include on our sanctions list certain Israeli ministers who send unacceptable messages of hatred against the Palestinians and propose actions that are clearly contrary to international law," Borrell pointed out before a meeting with EU foreign affairs ministers in Brussels.
Borrell, however, did not specifically name which Israeli ministers he was referring to.