White House concerned about tensions in the Middle East

The White House has voiced its concerns about escalating tensions in the Middle East, according to AFP via Arab News on September 19th.

Following the pager blast that struck Lebanon on September 18th, Washington addressed the dangers of the intensification of hostilities between the IDF and Hezbollah.

The explosion caused the death of nine people and wounded not less than 2,800 across Lebanon.

The Iran-backed Lebanese militant group Hezbollah has accused the Israeli forces of being behind the attack and has vowed to avenge “this sinful aggression.”

READ: Declan Hayes: Hezbollah is ready for the Litani river IDF “dream”

National Security Council spokesman John Kirby commented “We still don’t want to see an escalation of any kind. We don’t believe that the way to solve where we’re at in this crisis is by additional military operations at all,” adding “We still believe that the best way to prevent escalation, to prevent another front from opening up in Lebanon, is through diplomacy”.

Moreover, he affirmed that Israel has the right to defend itself., stating “How they do so matters to us, and we don’t shy away from having those kinds of conversations with the Israelis as appropriate”.

Arab News