PARIS, April 8 (Xinhua) -- French President Emmanuel Macron on Wednesday condemned Israel's latest strikes on Lebanon, stressing that "Lebanon must be fully covered by" the Middle East ceasefire.
France condemns "in the strongest possible terms" Israel's "indiscriminate strikes" in Lebanon on Wednesday that caused "a very high number of civilian casualties," Macron said on X after speaking by phone with Lebanese President Joseph Aoun and Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam.
These strikes "pose a direct threat to the sustainability of the ceasefire that has just been reached. Lebanon must be fully covered by it," Macron noted.
So far, the Israeli strike on Wednesday across Lebanon has killed at least 254 people and injured 1,165 others, with densely populated neighborhoods in the capital, Beirut, among the hardest hit, according to the latest data provided by the Lebanese Civil Defense.
Macron also spoke with Iranian President Massoud Pezeshkian and U.S. President Donald Trump Wednesday after the announcement of the ceasefire.
"I told both of them that their decision to accept a ceasefire was the best possible one," he said on X.
"I expressed my hope that the ceasefire will be fully respected by each of the belligerents, across all areas of confrontation, including in Lebanon," Macron said.
A two-week ceasefire between the United States and Iran took effect early Wednesday. Israel claimed it would comply with the truce, but insisted the agreement does not cover Lebanon, although Pakistan, the mediator of the deal, said it does apply to Lebanon. ■