US intelligence estimates that a large-scale conflict between Israel and Hezbollah is expected to break out in the coming weeks if a cease-fire agreement is not reached between Israel and Hamas.
U.S. officials are working to try to convince both sides not to escalate the situation © Mena Today
US intelligence estimates that a large-scale conflict between Israel and Hezbollah is expected to break out in the coming weeks if a cease-fire agreement is not reached between Israel and Hamas, Politico reported on Thursday, in the wake of the announcement by the U.S. Embassy in Beirut which it suggests that American citizens "reconsider" travel to Lebanon.
U.S. officials are working to try to convince both sides not to escalate the situation, and estimate that this task will be simpler if there is an agreement to calm Israel's southern border.
But it is not certain that an agreement will be reached based on the proposal that is on the table.
Meanwhile, according to two senior U.S. officials, the IDF and Hezbollah have already prepared combat plans and are working to obtain weapons and ammunition in preparation for a possible conflict.
Another senior official in the Biden administration estimated that "the risk of war at this time is the highest in recent weeks."
The U.S. and Iran appeared no closer on Saturday to finding an end to their war after the two sides traded fire in the Gulf amid a tenuous ceasefire, while a U.S. intelligence analysis concluded Tehran could withstand a naval blockade for months.
The United States has confirmed that government-level delegations from Israel and Lebanon will hold "intensive and detailed" discussions in Washington on 14 and 15 May, in what represents the most significant direct diplomatic engagement between the two countries in over four decades.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio met Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni on Friday and afterwards questioned why allies including Italy were not backing Washington's efforts to confront Iran and re-open the Strait of Hormuz.
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