Israeli army approves plans for offensive against Lebanon's Hezbollah

The Israeli military announced on Tuesday that it has approved "operational plans" for an offensive against the Lebanese armed group Hezbollah.

In a statement, the military said Ori Gordin, commander of the Northern Command, and Oded Basiuk, head of the Operations Directorate, "approved the plans and held a joint situation assessment in the Northern Command" as part of preparations for the continuation of combat against Hezbollah along the Israel-Lebanon border.

The military added that "decisions were made on the continuation of increasing readiness of troops in the field."

The announcement came amid increased tensions between the two sides, and also at a time when U.S. envoy Amos Hochstein, during his visit to Beirut, called for urgent de-escalation of confrontations on the Israel-Lebanon border.

In his meeting with Israeli leaders on Monday, Hochstein also urged the relevant sides to resolve the conflict along the Blue Line, the border demarcation between Lebanon and Israel, via diplomatic means, which he said would serve everyone's interest and is "achievable and urgent."

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is claiming the United States is withholding weapons needed for the war in Gaza. In a video released on Tuesday, Netanyahu implied the holdup was slowing Israel's offensive in the southern Gazan city of Rafah, according to an AP report. 

U.S. President Joe Biden has delayed delivering certain heavy bombs to Israel since May over concerns about killing civilians in Gaza. However, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Tuesday that those 2,000-pound bombs are the only weapons under review. He told reporters that, "Everything else is moving as it normally would," the AP report added.

With the Israeli offensive now in its ninth month, international criticism has grown steadily over U.S. support for Israel's air and ground campaign in Gaza, and the top United Nations court has concluded there is a "plausible risk of genocide" in Gaza.

The UN hasn't been able to deliver aid using a new route the Israeli military said it would secure inside southern Gaza, a UN spokesperson said, citing fighting and insecurity along the road.

"The lack of any police or rule of law in the area makes it very dangerous to move goods there," in addition to active combat, UN deputy spokesperson Farhan Haq told reporters on Tuesday.

Desperate Palestinians along the route "have to be assured that there's going to be a regular flow of goods so that there's not a panic when we get to the area," he said.

Haq said he had no knowledge of any UN aid traveling on the new route since Sunday, when Israel's military announced daytime "tactical pauses" on the roads.

Meanwhile, a merchant vessel struck days ago by Yemen's Houthi group has sunk in the Red Sea, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) reported on Tuesday.

The Greek-owned bulk carrier "Tutor" was hit twice on June 12 approximately 66 nautical miles southwest of the Yemeni port city of Hodeidah, Yemeni Coast Guard officials told Xinhua shortly after the strikes.

Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Sarea claimed the group targeted the ship with "an unmanned boat, several drones and ballistic missiles," causing severe damage and putting the vessel "at risk of sinking."

Sarea justified the attack by accusing the cargo ship's owner of violating a Houthi ban on entering Israeli ports.

The Coast Guard officials said an unmanned boat detonated at the stern, causing a big leak in the vessel's hull. An official added that the vessel made a distress call shortly after the first attack.

Despite search efforts, a missing person among the 21-member crew had not been located, officials said.

Following the incident, UKMTO said in an update on June 15 that the crew of the vessel had been evacuated by military authorities, and the vessel had been abandoned, adrift on the water.

(With input from agencies)