French President Emmanuel Macron called for a halt to the delivery of weapons to be used in the Gaza Strip.
Macron made the comments in an interview on the French radio show “Etcetera” on France Inter, which was recorded on Oct. 1 and aired on Saturday.
“I think today, the priority is that we return to a political solution, that we stop delivering arms for fighting in Gaza,” Macron said. He said France is not delivering any.
The U.K. has suspended some arms sales to Israel, while the U.S. has stopped one arms shipment.
Macron also criticized the failure of diplomatic efforts to reach a cease-fire in Gaza. “I think we are not being heard,” Macron said, calling the lack of a cease-fire “a mistake, including for the security of Israel tomorrow.” It will breed “resentment” and “hatred,” he added.
As the risk of a regional war increases, Macron said the priority should be to “avoid escalation.”
Following successive Israeli attacks in Lebanon, he said the Lebanese people should not be “sacrificed” and Lebanon should not become “a new Gaza.”
Iran has offered to support efforts to reach a cease-fire in Lebanon but on the highly unlikely condition that Israel halts its military campaign in Gaza.
