IDF spokesman Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari on Saturday spoke for the first time following the confirmation of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah's death.
In his statement, Hagari stressed that following a situational assessment, it was decided to change the instructions for the Israeli home front, restricting gatherings in central Israel to no more than 1,000 people.
In light of these restrictions, sports competitions scheduled to be held in central Israel will be held without an audience.
There are no further changes to the guidelines for central Israel.
When asked if the IDF would still carry out a ground operation, Hagari said, "We have challenging days ahead of us; we still have tasks to carry out. First of all, we must bring home the hostages held cruelly by Hamas in Gaza, and afterwards we must bring the residents of northern and southern Israel safely home. Our job, on Rosh Hashanah (the Jewish New Year) and in the days following, is to protect the citizens of Israel, and we will do everything we can in order to fulfill that task. We still have a lot of work, and we are determined to complete it."
Rosh Hashanah begins at sundown on Wednesday evening, and ends at sundown on Friday evening, when Shabbat (the Sabbath) begins.