US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said today that the world is “safer” after the Israeli assassination of the leader of the Lebanese Hezbollah, Hassan Nasrallah, and called for diplomacy to ensure security between Israel and Lebanon.
“Hassan Nasrallah was a brutal terrorist, whose many victims included Americans, Israelis, civilians in Lebanon, civilians in Syria and many others. Lebanon, the region, the world are safer without him,” said Blinken in his opening remarks at the ministerial meeting of the Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS.
The head of US diplomacy said that Washington will continue to work with its partners in the region and around the world to advance diplomacy that provides real security in Lebanon and allows citizens to return to their homes.
He added that the US will also continue to work to secure a ceasefire and a hostage exchange agreement in Gaza, which he said opens up the possibility of a more lasting, secure peace for the entire region.
“Diplomacy remains the best and only way to achieve greater stability in the Middle East.” The United States remains committed to urgently moving these efforts forward,” Blinken said. Nasrallah was killed in an Israeli airstrike in a southern suburb of Beirut on Friday.
Israel has been carrying out massive airstrikes in Lebanon since September 23, killing more than 960 people and injuring more than 2,770 others, AA writes.