Gaza Ceasefire ‘Necessary’ for Regional Peace, Says Stéphane Séjourné

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“We are all concerned about the regional situation,” Mr. Séjourné said after meeting with Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, an ally of Lebanese Hezbollah. France “supports Lebanon and in this context, (…) we also want a ceasefire” in Gaza, “necessary to guarantee peace in the region,” he added.

His visit, during which he also met his counterpart Abdallah Bou Habib and the head of government Najib Mikati, is part of “ongoing diplomatic efforts in favor of de-escalation in the region,” he said on X before his arrival.

The new round of talks, which resumed Thursday between Israel and the Palestinian Hamas, is being held at the call of the mediators – Qatar, the United States and Egypt – as fears of a regional escalation grow.

A “very simple message” of “de-escalation”

The Hamas attack on Israeli soil on October 7 killed 1,198 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official Israeli data. The Israeli retaliatory offensive killed more than 40,000, according to the health ministry of the Gaza government, which is run by the Palestinian Islamist movement.

Hezbollah, armed and financed by Iran, opened a “support” front for Hamas on October 8 and regularly repeats that it would only end its attacks against northern Israel in the event of a ceasefire in Gaza.

Stéphane Séjourné said he was bringing the Lebanese authorities a “very simple message” of “de-escalation” that would be sent “also to other countries in the region” to envisage a “more peaceful” future. He also said he supported “the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon” (UNIFIL) and “the strengthening of the Lebanese army in the south”, adding that Paris was working to extend the mandate of UNIFIL by one year.

Concerns are growing that the conflict between Hezbollah and Israel could spread

In a statement, the head of Parliament assured Stéphane Séjourné of “Lebanon’s commitment to the need to extend” the UNIFIL missions in accordance with “resolution 1701”, adopted after the 2006 war between Hezbollah and Israel and stipulating the sole deployment of the Lebanese army and UNIFIL peacekeepers in the south of the country.

Iran and its regional allies have been threatening Israel with retaliation since the assassination in late July of the leader of Hamas, blamed on Israel, and that the day before of the military leader of Hezbollah in an Israeli strike near Beirut.

Since then, concerns have been growing about a spread of the conflict between Hezbollah and Israel, which have been exchanging cross-border fire almost daily. The violence has left at least 570 dead in Lebanon, mostly Hezbollah fighters, and at least 118 civilians, according to an AFP tally. In Israel and the occupied Golan Heights, 22 soldiers and 26 civilians have been killed, according to authorities.

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