US envoy Amos Hochstein arrived in Beirut, Lebanon on October 21 for diplomatic talks aimed at brokering a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah.

Hochstein's visit comes at a critical juncture as exchanges between Israel and Hezbollah continue to escalate. Israel launched strikes on branches of Al-Qard Al-Hassan, a Hezbollah-linked financial association, across Lebanon late on October 20 as part of its ongoing fight against the Shiite political and military group, which has been firing rockets at communities in the north of the country.

“We're going to have a substantive conversation with the Government of Lebanon, with the Government of Israel, about how best to bring about a cessation of hostilities to end this conflict,” Hochstein stated at a press conference.

“This is my sixth, or maybe seventh, visit to Lebanon in the past year,” he continued. “While we spent 11 months containing the conflict. We were not able to resolve it. In each of my visits, I cautioned that the situation was urgent and the status quo was not sustainable. We were either going to reach a solution or things are going to escalate out of control.”

The envoy met with Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri and is scheduled to hold discussions with caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati. These meetings follow a report by Axios that Israel had provided the United States with a document outlining its conditions for a diplomatic solution to end the conflict with Hezbollah.

Hochstein's visit is seen as a crucial step in US efforts to de-escalate regional tensions, which have been exacerbated by the wider conflict involving Israel and Hamas in Gaza. Lebanese officials, speaking anonymously, expressed hope that the talks would lead to a breakthrough in ending hostilities along the Lebanon-Israel border.

Hochstein stressed the importance of not tying the IDF-Hezbollah war to other regional conflicts, particularly the larger Israeli-Iranian conflict or the Israeli-Hamas war in Gaza. He underscored the significance of UN Resolution 1701, which bans non-state actors like Hezbollah from operating in southern Lebanon near the Israeli border and seeks to strengthen the Lebanese army's control in the area.

The visit coincides with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken's regional tour from October 21 until October 25, where an IDF-Hezbollah ceasefire is expected to be on the agenda.

The State Department stressed the need for a diplomatic resolution that fully implements UN Security Council Resolution 1701 and allows civilians on both sides of the Blue Line to return to their homes.