Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah has given a televised speech, saying his Lebanon-based organisation is "ready for all possibilities".
The leader of Lebanon's Hezbollah has warned the United States that if Israel does not stop its assault on Gaza then fighting on the Lebanese front could turn into a wider war.
A strong military force backed by Iran, Hezbollah has been engaging Israeli forces along the Lebanon-Israel border in the deadliest escalation since it fought a war with Israel in 2006.
"We are ready for all possibilities," Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah said in a televised speech, speaking for the first time since the Hamas-Israel war erupted.
He blamed the United States for the war in Gaza and the high civilian death toll and said a de-escalation in the besieged enclave was vital to prevent regional war.
"You, the Americans, can stop the aggression against Gaza because it is your aggression. Whoever wants to prevent a regional war, and I am talking to the Americans, must quickly halt the aggression on Gaza," Nasrallah said.
He added Hezbollah did not fear the US naval firepower assembled in the region since the crisis erupted.
People check buildings destroyed in an Israeli strike on the Bureij refugee camp in the central Gaza Strip on Thursday. Source: Getty, NurPhoto / Majdi Fathi
Nasrallah predicted Israel's defeat in the war, and condemned Israel's "extremist, foolish, stupid and brutal government".
He sent his condolences to the families of those killed in the conflict, as well as his congratulations, saying that the dead would reach "paradise".
The attacks on 7 October represented "a new historical phase of the conflict with the enemy," he said.
The attacks killed more than 1400 people, the majority civilians, in Israel.
after Israeli forces invaded southern Lebanon that year.
It is backed by Iran and leads a multi-party alliance that holds just under half the seats in Lebanon's parliament.
Hezbollah is listed as a terrorist organisation by countries including Australia, the US, Germany and the UK. The European Union lists only its military wing as a terrorist organisation.
However, Hezbollah itself makes no distinction between its political and military wings.
Top US diplomat arrives in Israel
Nasrallah's remarks coincided with a visit to Israel by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who said the US had been clear that it is determined there should not be a second or third front in the conflict.
Blinken was speaking to reporters in Tel Aviv following meetings with Israeli leaders, adding that the US is committed to deterring aggression from any party.
He also appealed to Israel to take steps to protect civilians in Gaza as its forces kept up their bombardment of the Palestinian enclave and the death toll among residents soared.
The Israeli military said its troops were fighting Hamas militants in close-quarter combat in the ruined streets after encircling Gaza City in their bid to wipe out the Islamist group that controls the small, densely populated territory.
United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived in Israel on Friday and is expected to call for localised pauses in fighting to allow humanitarian aid into Gaza. Source: AP / Andrew Harnik/AP
Israel says Hamas killed 1,400 people, mostly civilians, and took more than 240 hostages in the attacks on , the deadliest day of its 75-year-old history.
On Thursday, Netanyahu said the military had encircled Gaza City and was advancing. The Israeli military said on Friday its warplanes, artillery and navy had struck Hamas targets overnight, killing several militants including Mustafa Dalul, a Hamas commander it said had directed combat in Gaza.
Hamas is a Palestinian military and political group, which has gained power in the Gaza Strip since winning legislative elections there in 2006. Its stated aim is to establish a Palestinian state, while refusing to recognise Israel's right to exist.
Hamas, in its entirety, is designated as a terrorist organisation by countries including Australia, Canada, the UK and the US. New Zealand and Paraguay list only its military wing as a terrorist group. In 2018, the United Nations General Assembly voted against a resolution condemning Hamas in its entirety as a terrorist organisation.
