Tel AVIVcTypeface:> The window for a diplomatic solution in the conflict between Israel and the Lebanese Hezbollah militia in the northern Israeli border region is closing, Defence Minister Yoav Gallant said in a statement issued on Monday.
Following an overnight call between Gallant and his US counterpart Lloyd Austin, Gallant’s office said the minister told Austin that “the trajectory is clear” regarding the potential for a broader conflict in the region. “The possibility for an agreed framework in the northern arena is running out as Hezbollah continues to tie itself to Hamas,” Gallant told Austin.
According to media reports, US mediator Amos Hochstein, who has been striving for months to achieve de-escalation, plans to hold further talks in Israel. He is also expected to meet with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in addition to Gallant.
Since the beginning of the war in Gaza between Israel and the Palestinian Hamas group nearly a year ago, there have been almost daily military confrontations between the Israeli army and the Iran-aligned Hezbollah in the border area of the two countries. (DPA)
