“Lebanon cannot become a new Gaza” - Macron calls for halt in arms supplies to Israel

French President Emmanuel Macron has called for a halt to the delivery of weapons and military supplies to Israel, in view of its bombardments of Gaza and Lebanon.

"I think that today, the priority is that we return to a political solution, that we stop delivering weapons to fight in Gaza," Macron said during a pre-recorded radio interview that was aired on Saturday, adding that France was not selling weapons or ammunition to Israel. 

Macron repeated his concerns over the ongoing military incursion into Gaza, which Israel has continued despite repeated calls for a ceasefire. "I think we are not being heard…I think it is a mistake, including for the security of Israel," Macron said, warning that the military operation would only lead to more hatred. 

The French President also said that avoiding an escalation in Lebanon was a "priority." "Lebanon cannot become a new Gaza," he said.

Every year, Israel receives approximately $3 billion worth of weapons from the United States. In May, the US State Department said that it did have sufficient evidence to merit blocking weapons shipments to Israel but appeared to concede that it was "reasonable to assess" that Israel had acted in a manner that was inconsistent with standards of humanitarian law.

Other countries have stopped exporting weapons to Israel, including the United Kingdom which suspended the export of some weapons and military equipment there last month, citing a "clear risk" that they could be used to commit a serious breach of international humanitarian law.

Thousands of people took to the streets of Rome, Brussels, London and Athens on Saturday to protest and demand an end to the wars in Gaza and Lebanon.

The protests took place almost a year to the day since the surprise attacks on Israel by Hamas on October 7 2023. 1,200 Israelis were killed and 250 were taken hostage in the raids, which triggered Hamas’ war with Israel that has reduced the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip to rubble.

Israel exacted a bloody retribution in the following 12 months, launching a military campaign which has claimed the lives of over 41,000 Palestinians in Gaza since then, according to the Gaza Health Ministry. Those statistics do not differentiate between Hamas fighters and civilians.

The situation is ripe for further escalation throughout the region. Israelis have been attacked with missiles from Iran and Hezbollah and explosive drones from Yemen.

In late September, Israel shifted the focus of its military action from Hamas to Hezbollah, which holds much of the power in parts of southern Lebanon.