The French president, Emmanuel Macron, has urged Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu this Thursday to act with "responsibility and rationality" after the preliminary agreement reached between the United States and Iran contemplates the "immediate and permanent" cessation of hostilities also in Lebanon, where at least three people have lost their lives during the day in actions by the Israeli Army.
"The (US) President (Donald) Trump has shown signs of a change in attitude towards Prime Minister Netanyahu in recent days. I believe that peace can only be built on this basis," he said in an interview with the France 2 television channel in which he argued that in "Lebanon, Benjamin Netanyahu must demonstrate a sense of responsibility and rationality."
In this regard, the tenant of the Élysée has stressed to Netanyahu that Israel's security "cannot be guaranteed by the conquest of neighboring territories" and has warned that his strategy in Lebanon, as well as in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, is "contrary to Israel's interests, as it fuels resentment and violence among all the populations of the region."
For this reason, he has expressed his intention to "quickly mobilize the international community to help the Lebanese Army regain control of its territory" at a time he has described as a "new phase" of the talks, in which the ceasefire reached "applies to Hezbollah, applies to Iran, applies to Israel."
Referring to the preliminary agreement signed the day before by the Iranian and US presidents, Masoud Pezeshkian and Donald Trump, Macron has avoided declaring the conflict over. "I don't think we can say that this war is completely over. (...) At the end of the 60 days of negotiations, we will see if Iran is less dangerous than before," he declared.