April 8 (Reuters) – French President Emmanuel Macron said on Wednesday he told the leaders of Iran and the United States that he hoped a ceasefire between them would be respected in Lebanon and across “all areas of confrontation”, as Israeli strikes continued to hit Beirut.
The U.S. and Iran on Tuesday agreed to pause their sprawling conflict for two weeks, but Israel on Wednesday killed more than 250 people in its heaviest strikes on Lebanon since fighting with Hezbollah broke out last month.
Israel and the U.S. have said Lebanon was not part of the ceasefire with Iran, although Pakistan, a key intermediary in the ceasefire talks, said the truce would include Beirut.
Iran has told intermediaries that Lebanon must be included in any ceasefire agreement with the U.S. and Israel, according to sources familiar with Iran’s position.
Macron said he spoke to Iranian President Massoud Pezeshkian and U.S. President Donald Trump on Wednesday and conveyed to them that including Lebanon was “a necessary condition for the ceasefire to be credible and lasting”.
He added that any deal between the countries must address concerns raised by Iran’s nuclear and ballistic missile programs, as well as its regional policy and its actions obstructing navigation through the Strait of Hormuz.
Macron also spoke to Lebanese President Joseph Aoun and Prime Minister Nawaf Salam and condemned Israel’s “indiscriminate strikes”, which he said pose a threat to the sustainability of the ceasefire.
“I reiterated the need to preserve Lebanon’s territorial integrity and France’s determination to support the efforts of the Lebanese authorities to uphold the country’s sovereignty and implement the Hezbollah disarmament plan,” Macron added.
(Reporting by Gursimran Kaur in Bengaluru; Editing by Chris Reese and Edmund Klamann)
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