Israel said on Tuesday that halting Hezbollah’s attacks in the country’s north to allow thousands of residents to go back to their homes is now an official war goal, as it considers a wider military operation in Lebanon that could ignite an all-out conflict, according to the AP News. 

Israeli leaders have often vowed to take more military action to halt the near-daily strikes, which started shortly after the outbreak of the nearly yearlong Israel-Hamas war in Gaza. Israel carried out many airstrikes on Lebanon, targeting and killing prominent Hezbollah leaders.