The Israeli army confirmed that it had expanded the scope of its ground operations against Hezbollah, crossing the "yellow line" that it defined in the villages it occupies in southern Lebanon. Following press reports in this regard, the Israeli army said in a statement sent in response to a question from Agence France-Presse and attributed to a military official that it “is working in a directed manner beyond the front line of defense with the aim of eliminating the direct threats that loom over the citizens of Israel and the soldiers (...) in accordance with directives from the political leadership.”