Blinken has been urging both Israel and Hezbollah to step back from their intensifying conflict, saying that all-out war would be disastrous for the region and that escalation was not the way to get people back to their homes on the Israel-Lebanon border.

President Joe Biden urged Israel and Hezbollah to step away from the precipice of all-out war on Tuesday, warning in a major speech before the United Nations that such a conflict could be catastrophic and arguing that there was still time for them to pull back.

The leaders of several western countries, including President Joe Biden, publicly called on Wednesday for a three-week ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah.