US Secretary of State Antony Blinken renewed calls on Wednesday for a diplomatic solution between Israel and Lebanon and said that a Gaza ceasefire deal would have a major effect in lowering tensions.
“What I’ve heard from everyone concerned is there is a strong preference for a diplomatic solution,” Blinken told reporters in Doha.
“There’s no doubt in my mind that the best way also to empower a diplomatic solution to the conflict at the Lebanese-Israeli border is a resolution of the conflict in Gaza and getting a ceasefire,” he said.
“That will take a tremendous amount of pressure out of the system,” Blinken said.
Blinken’s remarks came at the end of a regional tour during which he met Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has talked tough against Hezbollah.
The Iranian-backed militiamen fired barrages of rockets on northern Israel on Wednesday, after an Israeli strike killed a senior commander.
Blinken said that any resolution should ensure that people can return to their homes in both northern Israel and southern Lebanon.
The US Secretary of State was touring the region to push forward a ceasefire proposal between Israel and Hamas laid out by President Joe Biden.
