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Wednesday, January 3, 2024
Macron speaks with Gantz, urges Israel to avoid escalation, ‘particularly in Lebanon’

French President Emmanuel Macron, left, meets with Blue and White leader MK Benny Gantz in Jerusalem, January 22, 2019. (Elad Malka)
PARIS — French President Emmanuel Macron has called on Israel to avoid escalation, “particularly in Lebanon,” following a strike attributed to Israel that killed Hamas’s deputy leader in Beirut, the Elysee Palace says.
Macron, who spoke by telephone with the Israeli minister and war cabinet member Benny Gantz, says “it is essential to avoid any escalatory attitude, particularly in Lebanon” and that France would continue to pass on these messages to all players directly or indirectly involved in the area,” according to the French presidency.