The United States is growing increasingly worried about the potential for escalated conflict in the Middle East, particularly along Israel's northern border with Lebanon. It has spent the last eleven months truing to convince both sides to end the hostilities and calling for a diplomatic solution. It has repeatedly (yet to no avail) called on Hezbollah to move its troops away from the Litani border, which would end the fighting.
While it has been engaged in these efforts, tens of thousands of Israeli civilians have had to leave their homes in the North. Hezbollah's near daily rocket attacks have left many in Israel wondering when (and if) these civilians will be allowed to return home safely.
Here are some signs which have America feeling convinced that an all-out war is coming soon:
1. Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant recently said "The only way left to return the residents of the North to their homes is via military action"
2. He said this to both U.S. Special Envoy Amos Hochstein and Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, suggesting that Israel may be considering new military options for Lebanon
3 The mysterious detonations of Hezbollah's electronic devices like pagers and walkie talkies across Lebanon over the last two days, according to military analysts, are a clear sign that Israel is laying the groundwork for a larger operation.
As it has done for the last eleven months, the Biden administration has been urging restraint, with Secretary Austin calling on Israel to "give diplomatic negotiations time to succeed."
However, Israeli officials have indicated that they are all out of patience, as Hezbollah continues its rocket and UAV attacks even after the pager and walkie explosions which left 20 of its fighters dead and thousands more injured.
One Middle East official describing the region as "headed for chaos."
America has been preparing for this in the following ways:
1. For months, it has been warning its citizens to get out of Lebanon.
2. To safeguard its forces, it has stationed military equipment in the area, including amphibious assault ships and aircraft carriers, and bolstering air defenses
3. It has organized backup preparations for a mass evacuation.
On both sides of the border, citizens watch and wait anxiously.