USA does not want escalation after rocket attack on Golan Heights

By Simon Lewis and Kanishka Singh

TOKYO/WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Sunday he did not want to see an escalation of the conflict on Israel’s northern border after Israel accused Hezbollah of killing 12 children and teenagers in a rocket attack on the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights.

Israel said on Sunday it would crack down on the Iran-backed group following the attack on a soccer field, for which Hezbollah has denied any responsibility.

The attack raised fears of a wider conflict in the region, where tensions have risen due to Israel’s war in Gaza. The assault, which began more than nine months ago, has killed tens of thousands and sparked a humanitarian crisis in the narrow coastal enclave.

Blinken said the US was in talks with Israel about the Golan Heights incident and there was evidence that Lebanon-based Hezbollah fired the rocket.

“I emphasize Israel’s right to defend its citizens and our determination to ensure that they are able to do so,” Blinken said during a press conference in Tokyo. “But we also do not want the conflict to escalate. We do not want it to spread.”

Blinken expressed sadness over the loss of life and said a ceasefire in the Gaza war could help calm the situation on Israel’s border with Lebanon.

“It is so important that we help defuse this conflict. Not just to prevent it from escalating, from spreading, but to defuse it, because in both countries, in Israel and Lebanon, there are so many people who have been displaced from their homes,” Blinken said.

Despite mediation efforts by the United States, Qatar and Egypt, Israel and the Palestinian movement Hamas have so far failed to achieve a lasting ceasefire in the Gaza Strip.

US Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer echoed Blinken’s statement on Sunday, saying Israel has the right to defend itself against Hezbollah.

“Israel has every right to defend itself against Hezbollah, just as it does against Hamas,” Schumer said in an interview with CBS News.

“I don’t think anyone wants a major war. So I hope there are steps to de-escalate,” Schumer added.

(Reporting by Simon Lewis, Kanishka Singh and John Geddie; Editing by Sonali Paul, William Maclean and Cynthia Osterman)