In Israel, top US official says 'diplomacy' best way to deal with Hezbollah

Diplomacy is the best way to deal with the threat Hezbollah poses to Israel from its northern border with Lebanon, U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan told reporters in Tel Aviv on Friday.

“We also believe that the threat can be dealt with through diplomacy and does not require the launching of a new war,” Sullivan said.

He spoke during his second visit to Israel since the start of the Gaza war on October 7, which has been accompanied by cross-border hostilities between the Israeli army and the Lebanon-based Hezbollah.

The Israelis who evacuated communities along Israel’s northern border “have to be able to return to their homes” with a “true sense of security,” Sullivan said.

“The best way to do this is to come up with a negotiated outcome in which those Israeli citizens in those communities up on the northern border can know that they will not be subject to an attack that will take their lives and destroy their communities, we will continue to work on that I believe we can accomplish,” Sullivan added.

Deterrence is an important element of that kind of diplomacy, Sullivan said.

“We need to send a clear message that we will not tolerate the kinds of threats and terrorist activity that we have seen from Hezbollah,” he stressed.

Following the eruption of the Hamas-Israel war on Oct. 7, Hezbollah has mounted near-daily rocket attacks on Israel while Israel has launched air and artillery strikes in south Lebanon.