The upcoming winter factor is what has pushed Israel’s political and military leaders to mull an imminent attack on Hezbollah in Lebanon, the Jerusalem Post has reported.

French special envoy to Lebanon Jean-Yves Le Drian will visit Lebanon early next week, MTV said.

The local TV channel said it has learned from sources that Le Drian will visit Lebanon next Tuesday or Wednesday and that the ambassadors of the five-nation group for Lebanon - the United States, France, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and Qatar - will not meet before Le Drian's visit.

A U.S. official has told U.S. news portal Axios that "it would be crazy" of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to fire an experienced minister of defense like Yoav Gallant amid a war in Gaza and as Israel might be heading towards a possible all out war in Lebanon.

Lebanon has filed a complaint to the United Nations Security Council over an Israeli strike that targeted a civil defense vehicle in the town of Froun in the Nabatieh district earlier this month, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Tuesday.

The strike on Froun killed four civil defense members who were on a firefighting mission after Israeli strikes sparked fires in the area.

Speaker Nabih Berri has said that Lebanon has become used to the Israeli threats although they have increased in recent days.

Hezbollah can deter Israel and protect Lebanon, in case Israel decides to expand the war, a member of Hezbollah’s parliamentary bloc said, as Israel said it is considering a wider military operation to allow its northern residents to return home.

Hezbollah MP Raed Berro said Monday that the militant group "is ready for confrontation and has a lot in its pocket to deter the enemy and protect Lebanon in case Netanyahu thinks of expanding the war."

Three people were killed Tuesday and two others were wounded in an Israeli airstrike on the southern border town of Blida, the Health Ministry said.

An Israeli drone also raided the al-Litani river in Zawtar el-Gharbeye.

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday expanded the country's goals for the war in Gaza, vowing to allow Israelis who fled areas near the Lebanon border to return to their homes.

Nearly a year after Hamas's October 7 attack sparked war in the Gaza Strip, cross-border fire has been traded almost daily between Israeli forces and Hezbollah, which says it is supporting its Palestinian ally.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday told visiting U.S. mediator Amos Hochstein that a "fundamental change" was needed after nearly a year of cross-border exchanges with Hezbollah in Lebanon.

Displaced residents of the border area would not be able to return home "without a fundamental change in the security situation in the north" and Israel "will do what is necessary to ensure its security," Netanyahu told Hochstein, according to a statement from the Israeli leader's office.

Israeli reports indicate that Defense Minister Yoav Gallant opposes a major military operation against Lebanon at this time, as a senior Israeli army commander is actively pushing for a ground offensive, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu appearing, at least outwardly, to back the demand for an operation and even threatening once again to fire his defense minister.

The Kan public broadcaster and Channel 13 news both report that Northern Command chief Ori Gordin is pressuring decision-makers to launch a large-scale attack, while Gallant and Israeli army chief Herzi Halevi are far more reserved.