Gallant Claims Israel Taking 'Real Action' in Lebanon to Ensure Residents Return to North

Israel’s Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said Tuesday that the conditions for the return of residents to northern Israel "are in real action at this time."

“We have complex days ahead of us, challenging days and I think there is who we can trust,” Gallant said, referring to the IDF troops. He made the remarks following a meeting with army commanders.

The Israeli military on Tuesday warned people to evacuate nearly two dozen Lebanese border communities hours after launching what it said was a limited ground incursion against the Hezbollah militant group.

Hezbollah denied Israeli troops had entered but said it was ready to battle them.

The military advised people to evacuate north of the Awali River, some 60 kilometers (36 miles) from the border and much farther than the Litani River, which which marks the northern edge of a U.N.-declared zone that was intended to serve as a buffer between Israel and Hezbollah after their 2006 war.

Israel and Hezbollah have traded fire across the Lebanon border almost daily since Oct. 8, the day after Hamas sent fighters into Israel and sparked the war in Gaza.

It's been almost a year since some 250 people were abducted from Israel, and friends and family are worried about their loved ones as attention turns away from hostages and north toward Lebanon.