French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot gave a speech Thursday night at the UN Security Council, arguing that the situation in Lebanon could deteriorate to a point of no return. He blamed Israel for the attacks that resulted in a large number of casualties, but also noted the terrorist acts of Hezbollah, which attacks population centers in Israel.
The foreign minister stressed that if the Israeli attacks continued, Lebanon would not be able to recover from them. "We must do everything we can to de-escalate between Israel and Hezbollah," Barrot said. "We are working with the United States on a temporary ceasefire of 21 days to facilitate negotiations."
The minister called on both sides to accept the proposal presented by France together with the United States without delay. Earlier tonight, Reuters reported on behalf of a US official in the Biden administration that the president was indeed working on calling for a ceasefire between the sides. The proposal by the United States and France is expected to be published tonight.
Despite the call for a ceasefire between the sides for negotiations, Prime Minister Netanyahu made it clear earlier today, that if the sides open talks, they will be conducted under fire. In addition, Israel will agree to an arrangement with Hezbollah only if it agrees to withdraw north of the Litani.
* Channel 14 contributed to this article.
