France to send foreign minister to Lebanon in bid to stop the war: Macron

French President Emmanuel Macron said on Wednesday he was dispatching his foreign minister to Lebanon this week as part of efforts to prevent a full-fledged war, calling on Israel and Hezbollah to immediately stop hostilities.

"There cannot be, must not be war in Lebanon," he said in a speech at the U.N. General Assembly in New York.

"We are firmly calling on Israel to stop the escalation in Lebanon and Hezbollah to stop firing towards Israel," Macron said.

He said his newly appointed Foreign Minister, Jean-Noel Barrot, would travel to Lebanon at the end of the week.

On the conflict in Gaza, Macron said that while Israel had a right to defend itself after the attack by Hamas on Oct. 7, 2023, the war had lasted too long and needed to end now.

"There is no justification, no explanation for thousands of civilian Palestinian deaths. Too many civilians are dead," he said.

Reuters