"We still don't want to see an escalation of any kind. We don't believe that the way to solve where we're at in this crisis is by additional military operations at all," National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told reporters.

"We still believe that the best way to prevent escalation, to prevent another front from opening up in Lebanon, is through diplomacy," Kirby said.

Asked if Israel was adhering to international humanitarian law in the blasts on pagers and walkie-talkies in Lebanon, Kirby replied: "As we have said from the very beginning, Israel has a right to defend itself."

"How they do so matters to us, and we don't shy away from having those kinds of conversations with the Israelis as appropriate," he said, without confirming Israeli involvement.

As for the United States, Kirby echoed previous statements denying involvement: "We were not involved in yesterday's incidents or today's in any way."