The announcement came after Netanyahu’s defense minister said that Israel would seize large areas of Gaza and add them to its so-called security zones.

Gaza looms large. The most difficult problem is also the most obvious: Gaza. Netanyahu wants “total victory” over Hamas, a goal a top military official derided as sloganeering

A top official said “large areas” of the enclave would be seized, suggesting that Israel intended to hold on to more territory.

Former Israeli hostage Yarden Bibas, who was freed in February, spoke to CBS’ “60 Minutes" about his experiences being held captive by Hamas for over a year.

Israel Iluz, a Messianic Jewish pastor of Congregation Kiryat Shmona, in Northern Israel. Israel Iluz, Messianic Jewish pastor of Congregation Kiryat Shmona, longs for quieter days. For more than a year, he braved the Hezbollah rockets raining down in his northern Israeli town of Kiryat Shmona.

The Bank of Israel is expected to leave short-term interest rates unchanged at a policy meeting next week, likely staying cautious after the Israeli military's resumption of strikes in Gaza and Lebanon.

Israel’s army said it hit a Hezbollah drone storage facility in Dahiyeh, which it called a militant stronghold.

TEL AVIV — In the days following the Oct. 7, 2023, attacks, hundreds of thousands of Israelis rushed to join the fight against Hamas and allied militants in the Gaza Strip. The enlistment rate soared, according to the Israeli military, with the number of soldiers reporting for duty far surpassing those who were formally called up.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is traveling to Hungary despite an International Criminal Court arrest warrant against him over the war in Gaza.