The Biden administration is taking a more hands-off approach than usual during the escalating tensions between Israel and Hezbollah militants in Lebanon, fearing that full-on crisis diplomacy could make matters worse. The public restraint follows explosions of the militant group's pagers and walkie-talkies and an Israeli airstrike targeting a senior Hezbollah operative in Beirut, which threaten to spur all-out war in the Middle East. The US looks like a deer in the headlights right now, reacting to events rather than driving them, according to experts. The Biden administration is still hopeful for a deal in Gaza, which it considers crucial to calming regional conflict, and is pressing for it.