this was the view across the israel lebanon border earlier today where we ve seen a thick plume of black smoke in the sky as hostilities continue in that border area. so, let s start this hour by hearing from israel s prime minister. translation: last night, - i talked again with president biden. i do appreciate us steadfast position at the security council a position which backs our war effort. yesterday, i told president biden that we will fight until total victory, as long as it takes. the us understands this. i saw false reports that claimed the united states has prevented us from operational activities in the region. this is not true. israel is a sovereign country. our war decisions are based on our operational considerations. this is the live scene over the israel gaza border, where we ve seen continued bombardement this weekend. an israel military spokesman says it s expanding its ground operations in the southern and northern parts of the gaza strip. reuters is