The American news platform "Axios" said that Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin intends to visit Israel to discuss the tension with the Lebanese "Hezbollah".

The platform indicated that the visit will be on September 22 and 23, quoting Israeli and American officials.

Nine people were killed and 2,800 others were injured on Tuesday in Lebanon when mobile pager devices exploded in the hands of those carrying them.

Hezbollah held Israel "fully responsible" for the explosion of the communication devices, and promised "just retribution" for this "sinful aggression."

For days, Netanyahu has been pushing hard to launch a military operation against Lebanon to confront Hezbollah, under pressure from the party’s continued shelling of Israeli sites and the inability of tens of thousands of displaced Israelis to return to the north near the border with Lebanon.