ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq - The US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Friday that Washington was optimistic for a diplomatic solution in Lebanon and avoid the region from dragging into an all-out war as Israel continues its deadly strikes on Lebanon.
"We continue to engage intensely to prevent broader conflict in the region," Blinken told reporters on Friday after an East Asia Summit in Laos.
Blinken added they were supporting efforts by the Lebanese government to assert itself against Hezbollah.
The Middle East is on the brink of an all-out war in the wake of heightened escalations between Israel and its arch-foe regional forces including Iran and smaller armed groups like Hezbollah in Lebanon, Huthis in Yemen, Hamas in Palestine and Iran-backed Shiite militia groups in Iraq and Syria.
The international community, notably the US and France and regional countries including Iraq and Lebanon have been calling for a ceasefire, a request Israel has categorically rejected. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in his latest remarks reiterated that they would continue to fight what they called “a sacred war.”
The US secretary of state reaffirmed his country’s firm stance that Israel “has a right to defend itself”.
"So Israel has a clear and very legitimate interest in doing that. The people of Lebanon want the same thing. We believe that the best way to get there is through a diplomatic understanding, one that we've been working on for some time, and one that we focus on right now," Blinken said.
Concerning dire humanitarian conditions in Gaza, he added the US was voicing concern directly to Israel on the matter.
"I have real concern about the inadequacy of the assistance that's getting to them,” Blinken said, adding Washington had been "very directly engaged with Israel" on the topic.
Blinken's comments came a day after the UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry accused Israel of perpetrating “a concerted policy to destroy Gaza’s healthcare system” and of deliberately killing and torturing medical personnel in Gaza.
On October 7, 2023, Hamas launched a surprise and unprecedented attack on Israel.
In response, Israel launched a full-scale military aggression against Gaza, so far resulting in the killing of up to 42,000 people and the destruction of approximately 90 percent of the territory, according to latest reports coming out from the war-torn enclave.
The Israeli military has since last month expanded its operations to Lebanon, carrying out heavy attacks that have targeted civilian areas, leading to significant casualties and widespread destruction.
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