BEIRUT — Caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati told al-Arabiya on Sunday evening that Hezbollah had accepted the terms of U.N. Resolution 1701, which calls for the party to disarm and withdraw to north of the Litani River, but admitted that he has lost touch with the party.

"There is no other solution than diplomacy," he said, adding that the Lebanese Army should advance its positions south of the river to join UNIFIL, the only two armed forces mandated by the resolution to be present within the roughly 25 kilometer strip north of the Blue Line.

“Hezbollah is in the government with me and agreed to 1701,” Mikati said, according to the al-Arabiya report.

However, the prime minister hasn't spoken with Hezbollah at all in recent weeks. "There has been no communication with Hezbollah since mid-last month,” he said.

Israel assassinated Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah on Sept. 27, two days after he had reportedly agreed to a 21-day cease-fire plan proposed by the U.S. and France. One week later, Israel assassinated Nasrallah's presumed successor Hashem Safieddine in another massive bombing attack also on Beirut's southern suburbs.

“We must avoid bloodshed and destruction, and we must implement Resolution 1701,” Mikati said. Implementing the resolution, which was passed by the U.N. Security Council to end the 2006 war between Hezbollah and Israel, would also facilitate the return to their homes of those who have been displaced by the fighting.