US Secretary of State Blinken’s visit comes as Israel’s war on Gaza expands into Lebanon and threatens to engulf the region.

The United States will make a renewed diplomatic push to calm tensions in the Middle East as the region teeters on the brink of a regional conflagration with no end in sight following a suspected Israeli attack on a Hamas leader in Lebanon and two bombings in Iran is about the Israeli war against Gaza.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is expected to conduct shuttle diplomacy during a whistlestop tour of several countries, with a visit to Israel planned for next week.

Ahead of his visit, special envoy Amos Hochstein, an experienced man who has helped broker maritime talks between Israel and Lebanon in the past, is expected to lay the foundation stone.

Blinken’s trip, the fourth since Israel’s war on Gaza began on October 7, comes at a time when interconnected conflicts in the region are reaching a boiling point. In recent days, Israel has increased its attacks on Gaza, the occupied West Bank. Syria and about Hezbollah and Hamas in Lebanonand is suspected of killing a senior Hamas official Saleh al-Arouri on Tuesday in Beirut.

Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthi rebels have disrupted global trade and attacked ships linked to Israel and supporting Hamas in the Red Sea. As the leader of a multinational maritime coalition, Washington issued what looked like a… last warning to the Houthis. Over the weekend, U.S.-led multinational forces sank three rebel ships and killed several rebels, prompting Iran to deploy a warship to the region.

On Wednesday, Iran was hit by two explosions killed more than 80 people Commemorating the death of top Iranian general Qassem Soleimani, who was killed in a US drone strike four years ago. Esmail Qaani, commander of Iran’s Quds Force, blamed the US and Israel for the attack. U.S. State Department spokesman Matthew Miller dismissed the claims, calling suggestions of U.S. involvement “ridiculous” and adding that he had “no reason to believe that Israel was involved.”

Al Jazeera’s Laura Khan reported from occupied East Jerusalem and said the US “definitely” wanted to “restore some calm.”

“This comes at a very important time,” she said, adding that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu “has already declared that he is waging a war on seven fronts” in Gaza, the occupied West Bank, Lebanon, Syria, in Iraq, Yemen and Iran.

Hochstein will particularly focus on the northern border dispute between Hezbollah and Israel, where there has been crossfire and heightened tensions since Hezbollah’s assassination al-Arourisaid our correspondent.

Blinken’s planned visit also comes as Israel faces a high-risk legal showdown at the United Nations International Court of Justice next week after South Africa filed a lawsuit case They accuse Israel of genocide. The hearing, scheduled for Jan. 11 and 12, will raise some level of unease for the U.S., which has staunchly supported Israel since the start of the war and provided $14.3 billion in fast-track aid in November .

On Tuesday, however, the US State Department distanced itself from recent statements by Israeli hardliners Bezalel Smotrich and Itamar Ben-Gvir, who advocated the expulsion of Palestinians as a solution to the crisis. “We have stated clearly, consistently and unequivocally that Gaza is Palestinian land and will remain Palestinian land, with Hamas no longer in control of its future and no terrorist groups that could threaten Israel.” Müller said.

In Washington, U.S. national security spokesman John Kirby denied that apparent U.S. support for Israel’s extraterritorial killing of Hamas leadership and sending strike groups to the eastern Mediterranean to challenge Yemen’s Houthi rebels contributed to the escalation have. “I stand by my answer. No,” he said Wednesday in response to a Ask by Al Jazeera correspondent Kimberly Halkett.

Reaction to the assassination of al-Arouri, the leader of Hezbollah Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah said the strike was “a serious, dangerous crime that we cannot remain silent about.” However, in a delicate balancing act, he emphasized that he did not fear war with Israel but was wary of announcing a large-scale escalation.