Blinken says Mideast safer without Nasrallah, urges diplomacy

Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the Middle East is safer after Israel killed Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah and that the US is continuing to push for a diplomatic solution as the situation escalates.

Israel has ramped up its attacks in Lebanon against Iran-backed Hezbolllah, including the massive strike Friday on the group's headquarters in southern Beirut that killed Nasrallah. Israel has said it's preparing a potential ground incursion into southern Lebanon, a step the US and others fear would risk a drawn-out conflict pitting Tehran against Washington.

"During his leadership of Hezbollah, the group terrorised people across the region and prevented Lebanon from fully moving forward as a country — Lebanon, the region, the world are safer without him," Blinken said at an event in Washington on Monday.

Blinken has taken 10 trips to the region since war broke out almost a year ago in the Gaza Strip between Israel and Hamas, which is also backed by Iran. Israel in recent weeks has turned its military attention north to Lebanon amid sustained Hezbollah rocket attacks.