The Americans have relayed an Israeli message to Lebanon saying that Israel does not want to escalate the situation in connection with the latest row over gas drilling in a possibly disputed area, media reports said on Tuesday.

President Michel Aoun meanwhile is keen on “refraining from provoking the U.S. mediator,” ad-Diyar newspaper quoted unnamed sources as saying.

Israel has expressed relief that the gas row with Lebanon will be resolved through a U.S. mediation after it received Iranian “reassurances” that Hizbullah does not intend to escalate the situation in south Lebanon during this period, diplomatic sources said.

“In light of this, the status quo will be maintained on the southern front until further notice,” the sources told the Nidaa al-Watan newspaper in remarks published Tuesday.

The United States has said that it “strongly” supports any efforts aimed at securing an agreement between Lebanon and Israel over the demarcation of their sea border, following tensions sparked by the arrival of a gas ship in the Karish offshore field.

“I don’t have any travel to announce or to preview at this time, but as you’ve heard from us before, the Israel-Lebanon maritime border, that’s a decision for both Israel and Lebanon to make,” U.S. State Department spokesman Ned Price said on Monday, when asked whether U.S. mediator Amos Hochstein intends to visit Lebanon and Israel.

Hizbullah deputy chief Sheikh Naim Qassem has said that his group is ready to take action, "including force," against Israel’s activities in the disputed sea area once Lebanon’s government adopts a clearer policy.

"When the Lebanese state says that the Israelis are aggressing against our waters and our oil, then we are ready to do our part in terms of pressure, deterrence and use of appropriate means, including force," Qassem said in an interview.

Caretaker Prime Minister Najib Miqati on Tuesday stressed the importance of keeping the sea border demarcation file “away from domestic bickering and political calculations,” seeing as it “concerns all Lebanese.”

In a statement, Miqati emphasized that “the Lebanese state is following up on this sovereign par excellence file,” adding that “it is being addressed through diplomatic means in order to reach positive results.”

Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri announced Tuesday that U.S. energy mediator Amos Hochstein will visit Lebanon on “Sunday or Monday” to discuss the offshore gas row between Lebanon and Israel.

Berri made the announcement in response to remarks in parliament by MP Paula Yacoubian, who said that “the issue related to our maritime resources and Line 29 cannot be postponed,” suggesting that parliament discuss an urgent draft law that it has received in this regard.

The Lebanese military arrested 64 migrants as they were trying to set sail from northern Lebanon on Tuesday in an attempt to get to Europe, the Army Command said.

According to an army statement, the migrants -- Lebanese, Syrians and Palestinians -- were all detained and were being questioned, except for one pregnant woman who was bleeding and was taken to hospital.

the Oct. 17 MPs condemned Monday the arrival in disputed waters of a vessel intended to start producing gas for Israel.

"Amending the 6433 Decree is a national duty and we have legal proofs that Lebanon has the right to the Line 29," MP Melhem Khalaf said from Parliament on behalf of the reformist MPs.

Israel's Defense Minister Benny Gantz said Monday that the gas field dispute with Lebanon will be resolved through a U.S. mediation.

"The dispute will be resolved in the framework of negotiations between us and Lebanon, mediated by the United States," Gantz said.

The Israeli energy ministry claimed on Monday that an oil rig had arrived Sunday to an “entirely undisputed territory” in Karish, after a five-week sail from Singapore.

“It’s not even (above) the southern line that Lebanon submitted to the United Nations. Even according to the United Nations, it’s not in Lebanon,” Israel’s Energy Minister Karine Elharrar said, in an interview.