French Foreign Minister in Lebanon to de-escalate border tension with Israel
Fighting along the Lebanon-Israel border intensified yesterday despite the arrival of France’s Foreign Minister Stephane Sejourne in Beirut as part of a western diplomatic effort to de-escalate the conflict.
Mr Sejourne, on his second visit to the region since February, said he would present proposals to Lebanese officials to prevent war and ease tensions between Hezbollah and Israel..
“It is in no one’s interest for the conflict between Hezbollah and Israel to expand,” Mr Sejourne said in Beirut after meetings with Lebanon’s Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati, caretaker Foreign Minister Abdallah Bou Habib and army commander Gen Joseph Aoun.
France is seeking to avert “a regional war in Lebanon”, he said. “We call on all parties to exercise restraint,” he added.
Earlier, after a visit to the headquarters of Unifil, the UN agency responsible for keeping the peace between Israel and Lebanon, Mr Sejourne said he was in Lebanon to “convey messages and propose initiatives to the authorities here to push this region towards stability and avoid the outbreak of war.”
Fighting intensified along the Israel-Lebanon border as Mr Sejourne arrived.
Iran-backed Hezbollah said it launched several attacks on Israeli territory yesterday in retaliation for Israel’s attacks “on the steadfast southern villages and civilian homes” in the villages of Quzah, Markaba, and Serbin the previous day.
Nine people were wounded in the attack on Serbin, Lebanon’s National News Agency reported.
“There is renewed momentum for diplomacy on the Lebanese front as the focus has now shifted away from the Iran-Israel escalation,” a western source told The National.
Israel has set a deadline of September for tens of thousands of evacuees to return safely to their homes near the northern border.
That is currently impossible due to Hezbollah, a far stronger militia than its ally Hamas in Gaza, holding positions close to the border.
“Such a deadline means there’s a risk of war in the summer if a diplomatic solution is not found,” the source said on Friday, underscoring the urgency behind Mr Sejourne’s visit.