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."
Iran warned on Sunday against any big new attack by the United States and its allies, saying it had information such a move was being prepared, adding to the anxiety in a region already on edge after drone and missile strikes on Saudi Arabia.
Maronite Patriarch Béchara Raï raised the stakes Sunday, declaring that southern Lebanon "is not a bargaining chip." In his Sunday homily in Mayfouk, in the Jbeil district, the cardinal called for the "protection" of the region, insisting that such protection "begins with the state holding a monopoly on weapons », a thinly veiled call for Hezbollah's disarmament.
A major step forward in Morocco-Israel relations: the two countries "have confirmed their agreement on elevating [their] diplomatic missions to full embassy status," Le Monde reports.
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