Posted on 06/25/24
| News Source: Times of Israel
US President Joe Biden’s Mideast envoy, Amos Hochstein, warned Lebanese officials last week that his country would not be able to stop Israel from invading should Hezbollah continue its attacks, the Axios news site reports, citing a US official, an Israeli official and a Western diplomat close to the matter.
Hochstein was in Lebanon last week calling for the “urgent” de-escalation of cross-border exchanges of fire between Hezbollah and Israel, raging since the start of the Gaza war. He also visited Israel and held talks in Jerusalem with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, as well as opposition leaders.
During his meeting with Lebanese parliament speaker Nabih Berri, a Hezbollah ally, Hochstein reportedly asked for a message to be sent to the terror group’s leader, Hassan Nasrallah, that the US does not control Israel.
He advised Hezbollah to indirectly negotiate with Israel, rather than scaling up border tensions, Axios reports.
According to a Western diplomat cited in the report, Hezbollah sent messages back to the US after the envoy’s visit touting the terror group’s capabilities to deliver some serious blows to Israel, though it also doesn’t want war.
The Axios report adds that US officials are also concerned that as fighting continues in Gaza, a war between Israel and the Lebanese terror group is becoming more likely. This would likely flare regional tensions and draw the US deeper into the conflict.
“It will take everyone’s interest in ending this conflict now. And we believe that there is a pathway diplomatically to do it. If the sides agree to it,” Hochstein said during the visit last week.
Also working to prevent further escalation, two of Netanyahu’s top aides were in Washington this week to discuss a diplomatic solution.