The United States called on Monday for an end to the Israel-Hezbollah war “as soon as possible.” Washington urged the enforcement of a UN resolution that requires Iran-backed Hezbollah to withdraw from southern Lebanon.
This appeal came as Israeli forces intensified their war in Lebanon, targeting a finance group linked to Hezbollah. They also continued to pound Gaza, a conflict that has lasted more than a year.
US envoy Amos Hochstein, in Beirut, said Washington wants the war in Lebanon to end quickly. He emphasized that tying Lebanon’s future to other regional conflicts is not in the interest of the Lebanese people. He referred to Hezbollah’s demand that any ceasefire in Lebanon must also involve an end to the war in Gaza.
Hochstein also pointed out that UN Security Council Resolution 1701 should be the foundation for a new ceasefire. This resolution ended the 2006 Israel-Hezbollah war, but he said the parties had not fully implemented it.
Resolution 1701 stipulates that only the Lebanese army and the United Nations peacekeeping force (UNIFIL) should be stationed south of Lebanon’s Litani River near the Israeli border. However, Hezbollah remained in southern Lebanon and began launching cross-border strikes into Israel last year in support of Hamas.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is set to begin another Middle East tour in Israel on Tuesday. His mission is to push for a ceasefire in Gaza, as concerns of a wider war grow.
Israel, meanwhile, vowed to retaliate for an Iranian missile attack on October 1. This attack followed the killings of top militants, heightening tensions in the region.
On Monday, Israeli police arrested seven Israeli citizens accused of spying for Iranian intelligence. They allegedly gathered information on Israel’s military bases and energy infrastructure.
In Syria, the government reported that an Israeli airstrike killed two civilians in the capital Damascus. The strike hit an embassy district on Monday.
Israel expanded its war from Gaza to Lebanon last month. It aims to secure its northern border and allow displaced residents to return. Lebanon’s health ministry reported that an Israeli strike killed six people, including a child, in Baalbek on Monday.
Israel’s military chief, Lieutenant General Herzi Halevi, said his forces had hit 30 targets linked to Hezbollah’s financial firm Al-Qard Al-Hassan. Israel accuses the firm of funding Hezbollah’s weapons. These strikes marked an escalation in Israel’s war with Hezbollah.
The United Nations Human Rights Office reported that the strikes caused extensive damage to civilian property and infrastructure. Lebanon’s National News Agency said Israeli forces also destroyed houses in Aita al-Shaab, a border village, during heavy clashes.
Hezbollah claimed it fired rockets at Israeli soldiers near the village. After nearly a month of fighting, at least 1,470 people have died in Lebanon, according to Lebanese health ministry figures.
In Gaza, the conflict began after Hamas attacked Israel on October 7 last year, killing 1,206 people. Israel’s retaliatory strikes have killed 42,603 people in Gaza, mostly civilians, according to figures from Gaza’s health ministry. The UN considers these figures reliable.
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