Israel Yet to Respond to French Lebanon Proposals

FILE PHOTO: Razor wire lies near an abandoned house, amid ongoing cross-border hostilities between Hezbollah and Israeli forces, near Israel's border with Lebanon in northern Israel March 19, 2024. REUTERS/Carlos Garcia Rawlins/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Razor wire lies near an abandoned house, amid ongoing cross-border hostilities between Hezbollah and Israeli forces, near Israel's border with Lebanon in northern Israel March 19, 2024. REUTERS/Carlos Garcia Rawlins/File Photo
TT

Israel Yet to Respond to French Lebanon Proposals

FILE PHOTO: Razor wire lies near an abandoned house, amid ongoing cross-border hostilities between Hezbollah and Israeli forces, near Israel's border with Lebanon in northern Israel March 19, 2024. REUTERS/Carlos Garcia Rawlins/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Razor wire lies near an abandoned house, amid ongoing cross-border hostilities between Hezbollah and Israeli forces, near Israel's border with Lebanon in northern Israel March 19, 2024. REUTERS/Carlos Garcia Rawlins/File Photo

Israel has not given a response to France on Paris' proposals to reduce tensions between Israel and Lebanon's Iran-backed Hezbollah, France's foreign ministry spokesperson said on Thursday.

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

France has historical ties with Lebanon and has proposed written proposals to both sides that would see Hezbollah's elite unit pull back 10 km (6 miles) from the Israeli border, while Israel would halt strikes in southern Lebanon, Reuters reported.

Foreign Minister Stephane Sejourne went to both Lebanon and Israel in April to push France's efforts, and Israel's foreign minister was in Paris earlier this month. Lebanon's foreign minister was in Paris for talks on Wednesday.

"We have had a relatively positive response from the Lebanese, but I think we have not had any return from Israel at this point," Christophe Lemoine told reporters in a daily briefing.

The written proposal also looks at long-term border issues and had been discussed with partners including the United States, which has its own efforts to ease tensions and exerts the most influence on Israel.



Israeli Airstrike Targets Senior Hezbollah Figure in Beirut

People gather in front of a damaged building after an Israeli military strike at the Nuwayri area in Beirut, Lebanon, 10 October 2024. EPA/WAEL HAMZEH
People gather in front of a damaged building after an Israeli military strike at the Nuwayri area in Beirut, Lebanon, 10 October 2024. EPA/WAEL HAMZEH
TT

Israeli Airstrike Targets Senior Hezbollah Figure in Beirut

People gather in front of a damaged building after an Israeli military strike at the Nuwayri area in Beirut, Lebanon, 10 October 2024. EPA/WAEL HAMZEH
People gather in front of a damaged building after an Israeli military strike at the Nuwayri area in Beirut, Lebanon, 10 October 2024. EPA/WAEL HAMZEH

Scores were killed and injured in an Israeli airstrike that targeted at least one senior Hezbollah figure in central Beirut on Thursday, security sources said.
A large fire blazed in the background as rescue workers used hand torches to search through the rubble for survivors.

It was not clear who the Hezbollah targets were. The neighborhood was not previously hit by Israel.
A thick column of smoke rose above central Beirut after what appeared to be Israel's latest major aerial attack in a widening offensive against Hezbollah.

"The Israeli enemy launched a strike in Beirut, targeting a building near the Khatam al-Anbiya complex in Nuwayri, with another strike targeting the Ras al-Nabaa area near the al-Amiliyah building," the National News Agency said.

At least 11 people were killed and 48 injured in a preliminary toll of the Israeli attacks, Lebanon's health ministry said in a statement.