Macron Says Lebanon's Hezbollah Rejects Concessions

French President Emmanuel Macron. EPA file photo
French President Emmanuel Macron. EPA file photo
TT

Macron Says Lebanon's Hezbollah Rejects Concessions

French President Emmanuel Macron. EPA file photo
French President Emmanuel Macron. EPA file photo

French President Emmanuel Macron slammed Hezbollah on Sunday and said he would not give up on an initiative to save Lebanon from collapse, but that he was "ashamed" of the country's leaders and would increase pressure on them to change course.

Lebanon's prime minister-designate, Mustapha Adib, was picked on Aug. 31 to form a cabinet after Macron's intervention secured a consensus on naming him.

Adib quit on Saturday after failing to line up a non-partisan cabinet, dealing a blow to the French plan aimed at rallying sectarian leaders to tackle the country's crisis.

"I am ashamed of Lebanon's political leaders," Macron told a news conference in Paris. "The leaders did not want, clearly and resolutely, to respect the commitments made to France and the international community. They decided to betray this commitment."

Under the French roadmap, the new government would take steps to tackle corruption and implement reforms needed to trigger billions of dollars of international aid to fix an economy crushed by a huge debt.

But there was deadlock over a demand by Lebanon's two main Shiite groups, Amal and Iran-backed Hezbollah, that they name several ministers, including finance, who will have a big role in drawing up economic rescue plans.

Macron criticized both parties for blocking efforts to form a government by a mid-September deadline.

"I understood that the goal of Hezbollah was to make no concessions ... The failure is theirs," he said.

"There's a question that needs to be asked to Hezbollah and ourselves. Is it really a political party or does it proceed just in a logic dictated by Iran, and its terrorist forces?" Macron told the news conference.

He said political leaders had chosen "to deliver Lebanon to the game of foreign powers", destabilizing the region.

He gave Lebanon's political class four to six weeks to implement his roadmap, and said he would commit to holding a donor conference for Lebanon in October. He ruled out immediate sanctions.



Gunman Shot Dead, 3 Police Injured in Shooting near Israeli Embassy in Jordan

Image of the Israeli embassy building in Amman. (Archive)
Image of the Israeli embassy building in Amman. (Archive)
TT

Gunman Shot Dead, 3 Police Injured in Shooting near Israeli Embassy in Jordan

Image of the Israeli embassy building in Amman. (Archive)
Image of the Israeli embassy building in Amman. (Archive)

A gunman was dead and three policemen injured after a shooting near the Israeli embassy in neighboring Jordan, a security source and state media said on Sunday.
Police shot a gunman who had fired at a police patrol in the Rabiah neighborhood of Amman, state news agency Petra reported, citing public security, adding investigations were ongoing.
Jordan's government communications minister, Mohamed Momani, described the shooting as a terror attack that targeted public security forces in the country. He said in a statement that investigations into the attack were under way.
Jordanian police had earlier cordoned off an area near the heavily policed embassy after gunshots were heard, witnesses said. Two witnesses said police and ambulances rushed to the Rabiah neighborhood, where the embassy is located.
The area is a flashpoint for frequent demonstrations against Israel. The kingdom has witnessed some of the biggest peaceful rallies across the region as anti-Israel sentiment runs high over the war in Gaza.
Police had called on residents to stay in their homes as security personnel searched for the culprits, a security source said.