Returning Residents to North Israel Now a War Goal, Netanyahu Says

The Israeli prime minister told U.S. envoy that Israel would do whatever necessary to neutralize Hezbollah’s threat, which forced thousands to evacuate.

Ambulances are surrounded by people at the entrance of the American University of Beirut Medical Center, on Sept. 17, 2024, after explosions at locations throughout Lebanon.Anwar Amro/AFP via Getty Images

Israel has added the return of tens of thousands of its residents to their homes in northern Israel as a formal goal of its war against Hamas.

Visiting White House envoy Amos Hochstein met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sept. 16 to urge him to avoid opening a new front in Lebanon.