Ізраїльське бомбардування Лівану. Фото: Hussein Malla / AP / Profimedia
The foreign ministers of Egypt, Iraq, and Jordan on Wednesday condemned “Israeli aggression against Lebanon,” stating that Israel is provoking a “dangerous escalation” in the region, AFP reports.
In a joint statement issued after their meeting at the UN General Assembly in New York, the three diplomats emphasized that “ending the escalation begins with halting Israeli aggression in Gaza.”
Lebanon’s Foreign Minister, Abdallah Bou Habib, expressed disappointment with U.S. President Joe Biden’s remarks regarding the Israel-Lebanon crisis. Bou Habib said that Biden’s speech did not offer a solution, but he remained hopeful that Washington could intervene.
“It wasn’t strong, it wasn’t promising, and it won’t solve this issue,” Bou Habib said, referring to Biden’s address, in which the U.S. president warned against a “generalized war” in Lebanon and called for a ceasefire in Gaza.
Despite his disappointment, Bou Habib added: “I still hope. The United States is the only country that can truly improve the situation in the Middle East and in Lebanon.”
Tensions between Hezbollah and Israel have escalated in recent days, raising concerns of a full-scale regional conflict. Israel’s strikes on Hezbollah targets in southern and eastern Lebanon, as well as on the outskirts of Beirut, have led to hundreds of deaths.
