Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said on Tuesday that the ongoing tension with the Hezbollah group on the border with Lebanon brings things closer to military escalation.

He added in a statement following his meeting with the US special envoy to Lebanon Amos Hochstein: "We are committed to the diplomatic process, but Hezbollah's aggression brings us to a critical point in deciding on military activities towards Lebanon."

In the latest escalation developments, Hezbollah said it targeted a Merkava tank in the Natu'a area with a guided missile.

The group added in a statement: "We hit it with a direct hit and caused its crew to be between dead and wounded."

Meanwhile, a correspondent for "Sky News Arabia" reported Israeli artillery shelling around the town of Al-Wazzani in the eastern sector south of Lebanon.

Israeli media spoke of "the fall of rocket shells around Kiryat Shmona, damage to property, and no reports of casualties."

US envoy Amos Hochstein confirmed on Monday in Beirut that "the diplomatic solution is the only way out" to stop the escalation between Lebanon and Israel after nearly five months of almost daily mutual shelling along the border between the two sides.

He added during a press conference: "The United States believes that the diplomatic solution is the only way to end the current hostile operations," adding that "a temporary ceasefire is not enough."

He confirmed that in the event of a "limited war" breaking out across Lebanon's southern border, it would not be "containable."