After meeting Gantz in Berlin, German chancellor says Israel-Hezbollah conflict risks ‘regional conflagration’

Former war cabinet minister Benny Gantz meets German Chancellor Olaf Scholz in Berlin, September 26, 2024. (Ruth Zuntz)
Former war cabinet minister Benny Gantz meets German Chancellor Olaf Scholz in Berlin, September 26, 2024. (Ruth Zuntz)

BERLIN – German Chancellor Olaf Scholz warns that the Israel-Hezbollah conflict could spark a “regional conflagration” after holding talks with visiting former war cabinet minister Benny Gantz.

Gantz was a member of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s war cabinet until June, when he quit in protest of the lack of a post-war plan for Gaza.

During a visit to Berlin, Gantz also meets German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier and other officials to discuss Israel’s two-front war against Hamas in Gaza and Iran-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon.

Scholz posts on X that “Hezbollah must withdraw from the border area of Lebanon” and that “all parties have a responsibility to find a diplomatic solution.”

The German leader, who spoke with Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati yesterday, said: “The conflict between Israel and Hezbollah must not become a regional conflagration.”

Scholz’s spokesman says the chancellor added that “Iran also has a responsibility to de-escalate the situation,” and that urgent steps were needed toward a Gaza ceasefire and the release of Israeli hostages.

Germany has joined a group of nations that called “for an immediate 21-day ceasefire across the Lebanon-Israel border.”

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