European leaders demanded for Lebanon to be included in the U.S.-Iran cease-fire deal, intensifying their calls on Thursday after Israel launched a wave of attacks on Hezbollah in Lebanon that killed more than 200 people.
Iran says Israel’s attacks on Wednesday violated the cease-fire deal and Iran’s Revolutionary Guards threatened a military response if attacks on Lebanon were not “immediately halted,” in a statement carried by Iranian state media. Israel and the United States have said that the agreement does not include Lebanon.
These Israeli attacks were the deadliest since the escalation of the country’s conflict with Hezbollah, an Iranian-backed militia in Lebanon, after the United States and Israel attacked Iran in late February. Lebanese health officials say that more than 1,700 people have been killed there since the conflict started.
The Europeans ratcheted up their public comments as American and Iranian officials prepared to meet for face-to-face talks on Saturday in Pakistan, which brokered the cease-fire deal.
Britain
Yvette Cooper, the foreign secretary, criticized Israel’s attacks on Lebanon, calling them a “deeply damaging” escalation.
She said that she wanted “to see Lebanon included in the cease-fire,” because failure to do so would “destabilize the whole region.”
Ms. Cooper made the comments as Prime Minister Keir Starmer was in the Middle East meeting with representatives of Persian Gulf allies, including Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
France
Jean-Noël Barrot, the foreign minister, condemned Israel’s escalating strikes on Lebanon, arguing that they undermined a tenuous cease-fire.
Mr. Barrot told France Inter radio that “Iran must stop terrorizing Israel through Hezbollah.” But, he added, Lebanon should not be the “scapegoat” of an Israeli government that is “frustrated because a cease-fire has been reached between the United States and Iran.”
The European Union
Kaja Kallas, the top E.U. diplomat, 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.”
She said that the strikes had put the cease-fire “under severe strain,” and that the truce should include Lebanon.
“Israeli strikes killed hundreds last night, making it hard to argue that such heavy-handed actions fall within self-defense,” Ms. Kallas added.
Spain
José Manuel Albares, the foreign minister, condemned the Israeli strikes on Lebanon, calling them “a shame to humanity’s conscience.”
Mr. Albares said Spain would reopen its embassy in Iran, which has been closed for a month.
Spain has been one of the most persistent and vocal critics of the United States and Israel over the attack on Iran.
Carlos Barragán, Rawan Sheikh Ahmad, Aurelien Breeden, Stephen Castle and Ravi Mattu contributed reporting.
Amelia Nierenberg is a Times reporter covering international news from London.
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