United States envoy Amos Hochstein is due to visit the Lebanese capital Beirut “imminently” after Lebanon responded “positively” to a US-backed proposal to stop the Israel-Hezbollah war, Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati said on Monday.

Local reporting suggested that Hezbollah had approached the US-backed deal with “openness” even as Israeli strikes in Lebanon have intensified.

In Lebanon, the recent attacks are seen as part of Israel’s strategy to force Hezbollah and Lebanon to agree to a ceasefire, and an indication that it is prepared to expand its offensive by killing non-military members of the group and striking places outside areas where it has a strong presence, possibly to stir anti-Hezbollah sentiment.

The spokesperson of the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah, Mohammed Afif, was reportedly killed in an Israeli strike on Beirut on Sunday.

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Fresh Israeli strikes hit Beirut’s southern suburbs Saturday. Lebanon is expected to respond to a U.S.-backed ceasefire proposal soon.

Israeli troops are understood to have made their deepest incursion into southern Lebanese territory since the recent offensive began on October 1, as the militant group Hezbollah considered its response to a fresh ceasefire proposal.

Strikes by the Israeli army killed at least 20 people in Gaza on Sunday, the civil defence said, while also hitting a Hezbollah stronghold near Beirut's international airport.Israel has been fighting on two fronts since September,

Lebanon is considering a U.S.-backed cease-fire plan while Israel launched new strikes in the area south of Beirut. Senior Lebanon officials are reviewing the proposal and it is based on the U.N. Security Council resolution 1701,

Hezbollah is considering a US-Israeli ceasefire proposal, sources told CNN, as diplomatic efforts to end the conflict between Israel and the Lebanese militant group intensify.

According to state media in Lebanon, on Saturday, the Israeli army advanced approximately 3 miles into the country. This marks the farthest incursion since early October when Israeli soldiers first crossed the border into Lebanon following the latest escalation of the conflict with Hezbollah.