US urges Israel to pivot from military operations to diplomatic pathway in Lebanon

By Diyar Guldogan

WASHINGTON (AA) — US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin said on Sunday he underscored the need for Israel to pivot away from military operations to a diplomatic pathway in Lebanon.

In a phone call with Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, Austin said he expressed his condolences for Israeli soldiers killed in a drone attack by Lebanese group Hezbollah.

"I also reiterated the importance of ensuring the safety and security of (UN Interim Force in Lebanon) UNIFIL forces and Lebanese Armed Forces and reinforced the need to pivot from military operations in Lebanon to a diplomatic pathway as soon as feasible," he said on X.

Austin said he also raised the "dire humanitarian situation" in the Gaza Strip and stressed that steps must be taken to address it.

"I reaffirmed the United States' unwavering, enduring, and ironclad commitment to Israel's security," he added.

The Pentagon on Sunday announced that Austin authorized the deployment of a terminal high-altitude area defense (THAAD) anti-missile system battery and a crew of US military personnel to operate it in Israel to help bolster the country's air defenses following missile attacks by Iran on April 13 and on Oct. 1.

Israel has mounted massive airstrikes across Lebanon against what it claims are Hezbollah targets since Sept. 23, killing at least 1,437 people, injuring over 4,123 others, and displacing more than 1.34 million people.

The aerial campaign is an escalation from a year of cross-border warfare between Israel and Hezbollah since the start of its offensive on the Gaza Strip, in which Israel has killed more than 42,200 people, most of them women and children, since a Hamas attack last year.

Despite international warnings that the Mideast was on the brink of a regional war amid Israel’s relentless attacks on Gaza and Lebanon, it expanded the conflict on Oct. 1 by launching an incursion into southern Lebanon.