US official: We’re against Israeli ground op in Lebanon, want diplomatic ‘off-ramp’

UNITED NATIONS — The United States is presenting “concrete” ideas to ease the crisis in Lebanon, a US official says, while voicing opposition to any Israeli ground invasion to target Hezbollah.

“We’ve got some concrete ideas we’re going to be discussing with allies and partners this week to try to figure out the way forward on this,” the senior US official says as world leaders gathered in New York for the UN General Assembly.

The official, speaking on condition of anonymity, says that the United States wants to find an “off-ramp that will first and foremost prevent further escalation in the fighting.”

He voices hope that the US proposals will “reduce tensions and will segue into a diplomatic process that allows communities on both sides of the border — on both sides of the Blue Line — to safely return home in the near future.”

The official declines to describe the concrete ideas in detail but says that Secretary of State Antony Blinken and other senior US officials will be discussing them during his meetings at the General Assembly.

The official renews opposition by the United States to a ground invasion by Israel, which has been pounding sites in Lebanon associated with the Shiite terror movement Hezbollah, nearly a year after fellow Iranian ally Hamas attacked Israel.

“I think it is important for everyone to take Israeli preparations seriously,” he says.

“We obviously do not believe that a ground invasion of Lebanon is going to contribute to reducing tensions in the region, to preventing an escalatory spiral of violence, and that’s in part why we are so focused on utilizing this week to explore these ideas and see if we can develop this off-ramp,” he says.