09/04/2026
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09/04/2026
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LONDON / PARIS, April 9: The United Kingdom and France have called for Lebanon to be included in a broader Middle East ceasefire framework, as international pressure mounts over escalating violence and humanitarian conditions in the country.
British Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper said Lebanon must be part of any ceasefire arrangement, warning that continued Israeli strikes are causing mass displacement and severe humanitarian consequences. Speaking to Sky News, she said she was “deeply troubled” by escalating attacks in Lebanon, and told the BBC that the strikes were “completely wrong.”
Cooper also said that European countries, including the UK, are urging Israel to halt its military operations in Lebanon while calling on Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz to commercial shipping. She further stressed that Iran must not be permitted to impose tolls or restrictions in the strategic waterway.
Separately, French President Emmanuel Macron urged all parties involved in the conflict to respect the ceasefire, including in Lebanon, amid rising regional tensions. Macron said he conveyed to both Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian and U.S. President Donald Trump that their agreement to a ceasefire was a positive step that should lead to comprehensive negotiations.
He also said he had spoken with Lebanese President Joseph Aoun and Prime Minister Nawaf Salam, expressing France’s full solidarity following what he described as “indiscriminate strikes” by Israel. Macron strongly condemned the attacks, warning that they threaten the stability of the ceasefire.
The diplomatic appeals come after reports that more than 180 people were killed in Lebanon in a single day of fighting, marking one of the deadliest escalations in the ongoing conflict.
