Berri to Asharq Al-Awsat: French Proposal Has Some Acceptable Points, Others Need Amendment

Lebanese parliament Speaker Nabih Berri (R) shows a map in his office showing the expansion of the Israeli attacks on Lebanon to visiting French Foreign Minister Stephane Sejourne (L) during their meeting in Beirut, Lebanon, 28 April 2024. (EPA)
Lebanese parliament Speaker Nabih Berri (R) shows a map in his office showing the expansion of the Israeli attacks on Lebanon to visiting French Foreign Minister Stephane Sejourne (L) during their meeting in Beirut, Lebanon, 28 April 2024. (EPA)
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Berri to Asharq Al-Awsat: French Proposal Has Some Acceptable Points, Others Need Amendment

Lebanese parliament Speaker Nabih Berri (R) shows a map in his office showing the expansion of the Israeli attacks on Lebanon to visiting French Foreign Minister Stephane Sejourne (L) during their meeting in Beirut, Lebanon, 28 April 2024. (EPA)
Lebanese parliament Speaker Nabih Berri (R) shows a map in his office showing the expansion of the Israeli attacks on Lebanon to visiting French Foreign Minister Stephane Sejourne (L) during their meeting in Beirut, Lebanon, 28 April 2024. (EPA)

Lebanon’s parliament Speaker Nabih Berri said on Thursday he will reply on Friday or Saturday to France’s latest proposal over how to resolve tensions with Israel.

In remarks to Asharq Al-Awsat, he said the latest proposal included "some acceptable points and others that were not and must be amended."

French officials shared on Tuesday proposals made to Lebanese authorities to defuse tensions between Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah, Foreign Minister Stephane Sejourne said as Paris attempts to work as an intermediary between the sides.

Israel and Hezbollah have been engaged in escalating daily cross-border strikes over the past six months - in parallel with the war in Gaza - and their increasing range and sophistication has raised fears of a wider regional conflict.

Hezbollah has amassed a large arsenal since 2006 and since October thousands of people on both sides of the border have been displaced.

"A number of proposals that we made to the Lebanese side have been shared (with you)," Sejourne said.

Sejourne was in Lebanon on Sunday where he met officials including politicians close to Hezbollah. French officials say they had seen progress in the responses from Lebanese authorities. Sejourne said the basis of the proposals was to ensure UN resolution 1701 was implemented.

Hezbollah has said it will not enter any concrete discussion until there is a ceasefire in Gaza, where the war between Israel and Hamas is in its seventh month.

Israel has flagged a potential military operation along its northern front, saying it wants to restore calm on the border with Lebanon so thousands of Israelis can return to the area without fear of rocket attacks, even if Hezbollah has said it will not stop exchanges until there is a ceasefire in Gaza.

Sejourne presented this year a written proposal to both sides that included Hezbollah's elite unit pulling back 10km (6 miles) from the Israeli border and Israel halting strikes in southern Lebanon.

It also looked at long-term border issues and was discussed with partners including the United States, which is making its own efforts to ease tensions and exerts the most influence on Israel.

Berri did not go into details, saying the proposal will be up for debate.

"It wouldn’t be right to discuss it before the media before receiving the French response and how much they will be receptive to our comments," he told Asharq Al-Awsat.

He revealed that the proposal was written in English, rather than French, "which came as a surprise."

Berri added that a ceasefire reached in Gaza will inevitably be implemented in southern Lebanon because both conflicts are connected.

Furthermore, he condemned Israel for its "systematic destruction of Lebanese towns and villages along the border."

"Israel is bent on destroying them the same way it is levelling Gaza to the ground," he stated. "It wants to turn the areas into scorched earth in a flagrant attempt to incite the supporters of the resistance against the fighters who are confronting the Israeli occupation that is violating resolution 1701."

He cited Israel’s use of phosphorous bombs, which are banned by the international community, that destroy agricultural lands and render them unusable.

Meanwhile, a prominent source from the Shiite duo of Hezbollah and Berri’s Amal movement said the speaker’s response to the French proposal enjoys "unconditional" support from Hezbollah and caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati.



Türkiye and Iraq Reaffirm Commitment to Work Against Kurdish Militants, Other Security Threats 

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Iraq's Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani shake hands before sponsoring the signing ceremony of memoranda of understanding between Iraq and Türkiye, in Ankara on Thursday, May 8, 2025. (AP)
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Iraq's Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani shake hands before sponsoring the signing ceremony of memoranda of understanding between Iraq and Türkiye, in Ankara on Thursday, May 8, 2025. (AP)
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Türkiye and Iraq Reaffirm Commitment to Work Against Kurdish Militants, Other Security Threats 

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Iraq's Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani shake hands before sponsoring the signing ceremony of memoranda of understanding between Iraq and Türkiye, in Ankara on Thursday, May 8, 2025. (AP)
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Iraq's Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani shake hands before sponsoring the signing ceremony of memoranda of understanding between Iraq and Türkiye, in Ankara on Thursday, May 8, 2025. (AP)

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani reaffirmed their commitment to strengthening security cooperation on Thursday, vowing to work against threats, including Kurdish militants based on Iraqi territory.

Al-Sudani arrived in Türkiye as the neighboring countries are working to enhance cooperation and mend past tensions.

Relations between Türkiye and Iraq were often strained over Turkish military incursions into northern Iraq for operations against the banned Kurdistan Workers’ Party, or PKK, and the establishment of Turkish military bases there. Baghdad frequently condemned the incursions as a violation of its sovereignty, while Ankara accused Iraq of not doing enough to fight the PKK.

More recently, however, the two countries have deepened cooperation on security, including addressing the PKK presence in northern Iraq. Last year, Iraq announced that the Iraqi National Security Council had issued a ban on the PKK, although it stopped short of designating it as a terrorist organization.

Erdogan said the two "reaffirmed our determination" to fight against the Kurdish militants, the ISIS group and against members of network that Türkiye accuses of being behind a failed military coup in 2016.

"We once again emphasized that terrorism has no place in the future of our region," Erdogan said.

Al-Sudani said: "What affects Iraq’s security affects Türkiye’s security and vice versa."

"According to our constitution, we do not allow any group to use Iraqi territory to attack neighboring countries," he said.

Erdogan also named former minister Veysel Eroglu as his special envoy to Iraq.

On Thursday, officials inked 11 agreements, including in trade and defense, to advance cooperation between the two countries.

Erdogan stressed the urgency of resuming oil shipments through an Iraqi-Turkish pipeline.

The oil pipeline running from the semi-autonomous Kurdish region to Türkiye has been shut down since March 2023, after an arbitration court ruling ordered Ankara to pay Iraq $1.5 billion for oil exports that bypassed Iraq’s central government in Baghdad. The sharing of oil and gas revenues has long been a contentious issue between Baghdad and Kurdish authorities in Erbil.

Al-Sudani said water supplies to Iraq were also discussed. He said committees were continuing meetings to agree on mechanisms for water management projects.

"We emphasized the need for a fair understanding that respects the interests of both sides, in accordance with principles of equity and good neighborliness," the prime minister said.

In recent years, Iraqi officials have complained that dams built by Türkiye are reducing Iraq’s water supply.

The Tigris and Euphrates Rivers, which provide most of Iraq’s fresh water, originate in Türkiye. Experts fear that climate change is likely to exacerbate existing water shortages in Iraq.

"Our position is that water levels in the dams are at a minimum, and at the same time, Iraq has received very little rainfall this year," al-Sudani said.

The two also discussed steps to rapidly implement The Development Road Project - a large-scale infrastructure plan to connect the Arabian Gulf with Türkiye by constructing highways and rail links from southern Iraq to the Turkish border.

The Iraqi prime minister's visit comes after the PKK’s jailed leader, Abdullah Ocalan, called on his group to dissolve and disarm as part of a new peace initiative with Türkiye. The group declared a unilateral ceasefire in March and is now expected to hold a congress in northern Iraq, during which it would announce its dissolution, Turkish officials have said.

The PKK, which has maintained bases in northern Iraq’s semiautonomous Kurdish region, has fought Türkiye for an autonomous Kurdish state. The conflict has claimed tens of thousands of lives since the 1980s. Türkiye and its Western allies have designated the PKK a terrorist organization.

Al-Sudani said: "We welcome the political process and the disarmament path concerning the PKK."