Lebanon’s caretaker prime minister said he is working to ensure his country does not enter Israel’s war on Gaza, even as Hezbollah and Israel have been exchanging cross-border fire.

Najib Mikati said he feared an escalation, with the border skirmishes stoking concerns that Lebanon’s Iran-backed Hezbollah could launch its own war with Israel.

“I am doing my duty to prevent Lebanon from entering the war” raging further south, Mikati told AFP in an interview.

“Lebanon is in the eye of the storm,” Mikati said. “I cannot rule out an escalation because there is a race to reach a ceasefire before escalation spreads in the entire region.”