War between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon could have “catastrophic and unforeseen consequences”, according to a senior US official.

The official was speaking at the Middle East America Dialogue (MEAD) summit in Washington, DC, on Monday. 

According to the official, tens of thousands of people could be killed if the current fighting developed into a full-on war.

Reports quoted the official as saying: “There is an idea of ‘Let’s go to war and then we will destroy all the missiles Hezbollah has and everything will be fine.’ It’s not that simple.

"There is no magic solution. The other side cannot be annihilated. At the end of the war, Israel may pay a heavy price and not achieve its goals.

“There is no war in lab conditions. It’s not a game. I don’t doubt the capabilities of the IDF, but we have to think about the fact that there will be serious consequences for both sides.”

The US official was speaking on the second day of the two-day conference.

It was chaired by two former senior US administration officials, Dennis Ross and Elliot Abrams, and two former American ambassadors to Israel, Tom Nides and David Friedman.

Israel is experiencing almost daily attacks from Hezbollah-led forces across the border.

The terror group is targeting IDF military posts as well as Israeli communities on the border.

Former war cabinet minister Benny Gantz spoke at the conference and said Israel was slow to respond to the threat of Hezbollah. “We are late on this,” he said.