Two days after the visit to Lebanon by the new French Minister of Foreign Affairs, Stéphane Séjourné, Lebanese Prime Minister Nagib Mikati received French Ambassador to Beirut Hervé Magro on Thursday.
Two days after the visit to Lebanon by the new French Minister of Foreign Affairs, Stéphane Séjourné, Lebanese Prime Minister Nagib Mikati received French Ambassador to Beirut Hervé Magro on Thursday.
Following the meeting, Magro asserted that he had presented to the Prime Minister the "ideas" of Paris regarding the situation in southern Lebanon, where Hezbollah and the Israeli army have been engaging in a barrage of bombings since October 8, 2023, following the Hamas attack in Israel.
One does not need to be a globally renowned expert to know the immediate measures to reduce tension. It suffices for Hezbollah to respect UN Resolution 1701 and demand that its militants vacate the border area and move beyond the Litani River, as required since 2006.
Furthermore, the narrative of the Lebanese government aligns with that of Iran. This implies that Mikati dares not ask Hezbollah to cease provocations.
This charade of diplomatic discussions between France and Lebanon appears nothing more than a theatrical performance, where "ideas" are presented with little hope of implementation and where political realities are overshadowed by regional power dynamics. The theater of diplomacy continues, while the people of southern Lebanon bear the brunt of escalating violence.
By Marc Fakhoury
Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthis escalated their campaign of strikes against Saudi Arabia on Thursday, trying to shut down the kingdom's airspace and oil facilities with missile fire that has killed three people this week.
Dodging the broken glass carpeting her home in southern Lebanon, Mariam al-Yaghi exited onto her upper balcony and pointed. A few hundred metres away was a sight the 67-year-old had grown accustomed to: military vehicles moving through the adjacent Lebanese village, still occupied by Israeli troops.
Syria may deploy troops to help Saudi Arabia fight Yemen's Houthis, a US official and a Syrian defence official said, as the Iran-aligned group steps up its missile and drone attacks on the kingdom, killing three people at Saudi airports this week.
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