Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant met Thursday in Tel Aviv with Amos Hochstein, US special envoy to the region, to discuss efforts to de-escalate tensions on the Lebanon-Israel border.
Hochstein, in Israel on a family vacation during Passover week, met with Gallant as part of the US bid to advance an agreement with Hezbollah to end the low-level conflict on the border, Ynet reported. The envoy is also expected to meet with President Isaac Herzog on Saturday.
The meeting between Hochstein and Gallant came hours before an Israeli citizen was killed by an anti-tank missile fired by Hezbollah toward the disputed region of Mount Dov, also known as Shebaa Farms, near the border with Israel.
Sharif Suad, a resident of the Bedouin town of Sallama, near Karmiel, in northern Israel, had been performing infrastructure work for the Israeli military in the area when he was killed, said the Israel Defense Forces. The Jerusalem Post reported that the works are part of an effort to improve military defenses along the border and were being conducted at night for security reasons. A missile struck the truck that Suad was driving.
Hochstein’s talks with Israeli leaders are taking place against the backdrop of possible advances for a deal between Israel and Hamas for the release of hostages in Gaza and a cease-fire. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is set to arrive in Israel on Tuesday, after a visit to Saudi Arabia on Monday for a multilateral meeting with Saudi, Egyptian, French and perhaps other foreign ministers. French Foreign Minister Stephane Sejourne will also travel to Israel after the Saudi gathering.
Prior to landing in Saudi Arabia, the French minister plans to stop in Lebanon in another effort aimed at lowering tensions in the region. Diplomatic sources told Al-Monitor that the French and American administrations are coordinating their positions on Lebanon.
According to one such source, the proposal presented by France a few weeks ago for an Israeli-Hezbollah agreement to de-escalate the border region appears unfeasible for the moment. The plan is said to include Hezbollah withdrawing from border areas and the involvement of UN peacekeepers.
In other diplomatic news, a senior Egyptian delegation led by Egyptian intel chief Abbas Kamel arrived in Tel Aviv for talks on a possible hostage deal with Hamas.
