As U.S. diplomat Amos Hochstein visited the region to push for a ceasefire, Israel struck Beirut’s southern suburbs and the eastern Bekaa region, and a barrage of rockets fired from Lebanon killed a man in northern Israel.

Qassem made his comments in a pre-recorded address aired a few hours after U.S. envoy Amos Hochstein said he would head to Israel to try to close a deal on a truce, after two days of meetings with Lebanese officials including two sit-downs with parliament speaker Nabih Berri, a Hezbollah ally.

Israel and Lebanon's Hezbollah traded deadly blows on Thursday as their war raged on despite signs of progress in U.S. ceasefire efforts, with airstrikes pounding Beirut's southern suburbs and rockets flying into northern Israel.