The US and Europe Warned Hezbollah to Stop Attacks on Israel

The US, Europe, and Arab mediators are working to prevent the expansion of cross-border attacks between Israel and Hezbollah into a larger regional war. According to the Associated Press, current and former diplomats reported that American and European officials have warned Hezbollah about military confrontation with the Israeli army. The officials cautioned Hezbollah that if Israel decides to execute its plans to attack Hezbollah in Lebanon, this Iranian proxy group should not count on Washington and others to restrain Israeli leaders. They also warned Hezbollah not to rely on its militants' ability to manage whatever happens in the future. Gerald Feierstein, a former senior American diplomat, stated that despite a decrease in hostilities in recent days, Israel seems to be preparing for a military confrontation that would be 'of a completely different scale' compared to the war with Hamas. He added that if the situation worsens for Israel, the US will directly support its ally. According to him, the message sent to Hezbollah is: 'Don't think you have as much capability as you think.' Martin Griffiths, the UN humanitarian affairs chief, described the war between Israel and Hezbollah as 'apocalyptic.' US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin also stated in a recent meeting with his Israeli counterpart Yoav Gallant at the Pentagon that 'such a war would be a disaster for Lebanon.' He noted that 'another war between Israel and Hezbollah could easily turn into a regional war with terrible consequences for the Middle East.' Gallant mentioned that they are closely working towards a cooperation agreement but must also discuss preparedness for all possible scenarios. Experts believe that the Islamic Republic and its proxies will respond more severely to Israel's war against Hezbollah compared to the war in Gaza. In this context, Iran's permanent mission to the UN warned via a post on social media that if Israel conducts a 'full-scale military invasion' against Hezbollah, 'a devastating war will occur.' The Iranian mission did not specify what it meant by 'all options' on the table. The groups supported by the Islamic Republic, which Tehran calls the 'Axis of Resistance,' include Hezbollah, Hamas, Islamic Jihad, the Houthis, and other Shiite groups in Syria and Iraq. These groups have conducted repeated attacks against Israel since the terrorist attack by Hamas on October 7, which resulted in the massacre of 1,200 Israeli citizens and the taking of over 250 hostages. The Islamic Republic also launched an unprecedented attack on April 14, firing over 300 suicide drones and missiles towards Israel, most of which were intercepted before entering Israeli airspace by a coalition of the US, UK, France, Israel, and Jordan. Shortly after the October 7 terrorist attack, Hezbollah, as the main proxy of the Islamic Republic, began sporadic missile and drone attacks on northern Israel, leading to the evacuation of nearly 60,000 Israeli citizens from areas adjacent to Lebanon. In response, Israel has conducted deadly attacks on Hezbollah positions in Lebanon and Syria, killing many members of the group, including senior commanders. So far, US diplomatic efforts to push Hezbollah back beyond the Litani River, 30 kilometers from the Israel-Lebanon border, based on UN Security Council Resolution 1701, which ended the 34-day war between Israel and Hezbollah in the summer of 2006, have failed. The US is calling for a rewrite of parts of the ceasefire and hostage release plan to revive negotiations between Israel and Hamas.