Israeli PM Netanyahu says we will return residents of the north to their homes

Jerusalem: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed on Wednesday to return tens of thousands of residents evacuated from northern border areas to their homes, amid mounting tensions with the Iranian-backed Hezbollah movement in Lebanon.

In a brief video statement, Netanyahu made no mention of the operation that remotely detonated thousands of pagers and hand-held radio devices used by operatives of Hezbollah, which has blamed the attack on Israel.

"I have said it before, we will return to the citizens of the north to their homes in security and that's exactly what we are going to do," he said in a brief video statement, giving no further details.

In separate remarks, Defence Minister Yoav Gallant said more forces were being sent to the northern border, where Israel has been exchanging daily fire with the Iranian-backed Hezbollah for months, as the war moved into a new phase.

"The 'centre of gravity' is moving north, meaning that we are allocating forces, resources and energy for the northern arena," he said in remarks released by his office.