European Leaders Demand Lebanon Inclusion In U.S.-Iran Ceasefire Amid Israeli Attacks

European leaders intensified their calls for Lebanon to be included in the U.S.-Iran cease-fire deal after Israel launched a wave of attacks on Hezbollah in Lebanon that killed more than 200 people.

Iran said Israel's attacks on Lebanon violated the cease-fire and Iran's Revolutionary Guards threatened a military response if attacks were not immediately halted.

Al Jazeera

Israel and the United States have said the agreement does not include Lebanon.

British Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper criticized Israel's attacks on Lebanon, calling them a deeply damaging escalation.

E.U. diplomat Kaja Kallas condemned the Israeli attacks on Lebanon, saying Hezbollah dragged Lebanon into the war, but Israel's right to defend itself does not justify inflicting such massive destruction.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz urged Israel to end the offensive in Lebanon and warned that the military assault threatened peace efforts.

The inclusion of Lebanon in the ceasefire deal became a major point of contention.

Pakistan said Lebanon was specifically included, while Israel and the White House said it was not.

Al Jazeera

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian and Parliament Speaker Mohammad-Bagher Ghalibaf reiterated that they see Lebanon as part of the ceasefire agreement.

The Lebanese government said Israeli forces had killed more than 250 people in their heaviest strikes on the country.

The UN warned that the continuation of fighting in Lebanon posed a grave danger to the ceasefire.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rejected including Hezbollah in the ceasefire.

He instructed his cabinet to open direct talks with Lebanon to disarm Hezbollah.

Netanyahu's war put the U.S.-Iran ceasefire agreement to the test just one day after it was announced.

Iran condemned Israel’s attacks on Lebanon as a violation of the ceasefire.

The close ties between Trump and Netanyahu were reflected in the U.S.’s inconsistent stance on halting attacks in Lebanon.

Netanyahu's influence over Trump was evident in a classified White House meeting on February 12.

Canada was pushing for Lebanon to be part of the ceasefire deal.

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese also called for Lebanon's inclusion.

Anadolu Ajansı

The European Union's senior diplomat Kaja Kallas condemned the Israeli attacks on Lebanon.

The UN secretary-general's spokesperson warned that the continuation of military activity in Lebanon poses a grave danger.

The situation in Lebanon remained explosive less than two days after the announcement of the two-week ceasefire.