Leaf says Nasrallah taking Lebanon to "dangerous place"

U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs Barbara Leaf has accused Hezbollah of putting Lebanon on a slippery slope.

"It is a place of great volatility and risk," Leaf said in an interview with Sky News Arabia, adding that Hezbollah and its leader are "taking a lot of risks" that could take the group and Lebanon itself into a "dangerous place."

Since the war in Gaza erupted in October, there have been near-daily exchanges along the Lebanon-Israel border and international mediators have scrambled to prevent an all-out war in tiny Lebanon.

"It's a dangerous game that Hezbollah has played," Leaf warned, as she accused Iran of escalating tensions by arming Hezbollah, the Yemeni Houthi rebels and other armed groups in the region.

The United States and other governments continue with efforts to prevent the ongoing war in the Gaza Strip from spilling over into Lebanon.

Hezbollah has vowed not to stop the fighting until a cease-fire is reached in Gaza.

After weeks of fruitless mediation efforts, Hamas proposed a new six-week truce in Gaza and an exchange of several dozen Israeli hostages for Palestinian prisoners. It is still not clear whether a Gaza ceasefire would apply to Lebanon.

Although Hezbollah said it would abide by any Gaza truce, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said that Israel would increase its strikes on Hezbollah even if a ceasefire is reached in Gaza.