Washington has stepped up mediation efforts to achieve a ceasefire in Lebanon, while proposals are now under discussion to end the diplomatic deadlock over Gaza.
US special envoy Amos Hochstein is due to arrive in Israel on Thursday to formulate a proposal that would end the war in Lebanon. His trip was announced after Israeli political and military leaders held a meeting on Tuesday night to discuss ending the conflict.
The meeting discussed the impending conclusion of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) operation to clear the southern Lebanese Shia villages that Israel claims were used by Hizbullah as staging grounds for a planned invasion of the Galilee.
The fact that Mr Hochstein is again travelling to the region, just a few days before the US election, is a clear sign that Washington believes a deal, starting with a 60-day truce, is possible.
Israeli military officials suggested that an agreement to end the fighting in Lebanon could be concluded within a matter of days should the Israeli political leadership endorse the American mediation efforts.
Until an agreement is concluded, the IDF is pressing ahead with its ground operation in south Lebanon and air strikes across the country in an effort to force Hizbullah and the Lebanese government to accept a deal under Israeli terms.
Under discussion is an improved version of the UN security council resolution 1701, which aims to end the conflict between Israel and Hizbullah.
The improvement to the resolution would keep Hizbullah fighters away from the Israeli border, combined with an increased role for a revamped Unifil and the Lebanese army.
Israel is also seeking arrangements to prevent Hizbullah from rearming and guarantees that the IDF will be able to act if the Iranian-backed militia attempt to send fighters from its elite Radwan strike force back to border villages.
“Up until today, we lived in periods of complete quiet, in which the enemy built itself up, and every few years we went to war. That has got to end,” an Israeli official said.
CIA director William Burns is expected to travel to Cairo in the coming days to discuss a Gaza ceasefire and hostage release deal. Qatar is waiting for a response from Israel and Hamas to its new proposal for the release of 11 hostages (reportedly nine women and two elderly men) held in Gaza in exchange for a one-month pause in the fighting.
A separate proposal put forward by Egyptian president Abdel Fattah el-Sisi calls for the release of four Israeli hostages in exchange for a two-day ceasefire.
“We are open to any proposal to end the aggression in Gaza,” said Hamas spokesperson Sami Abu Zuhri.
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