Flurry of diplomatic activity in Lebanon as UK 'condemns' Golan attack
Monday saw a flurry of diplomatic activity, as caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati held "intensive diplomatic contacts," including a call with British Foreign Secretary David Lammy, who “renewed the call on all parties to exercise restraint to prevent escalation,” Mikati’s office said in a statement.
Lammy posted on social media site X that he had called Mikati “to express my concern at escalating tension and welcomed the Government of Lebanon’s statement urging for cessation of all violence.”
“We both agreed that widening of conflict in the region is in nobody’s interest,” he said.
The UK condemned the strike on the Israeli-annexed Golan Heights, which killed 12 people, and said it was "deeply concerned about the risk of further escalation and destabilization".
In his statement on X, Lammy also said the UK's new Labour government has been clear that Lebanon's Hezbollah movement "must cease their attacks" on Israel.
Also on Monday, Hezbollah’s head of foreign relations, Ammar Moussawi, met with Lebanese Foreign Minister Abdallah Bou Habib, according to a Lebanese diplomat and a Hezbollah official who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to comment publicly on the matter.
The diplomatic official said there had also been a flurry of calls by Amos Hochstein, a senior advisor to U.S. President Joe Biden who frequently handles delicate negotiations in Lebanon, attempting to ensure that the Israeli retaliation and Hezbollah’s response would not spiral into an all-out war.
Israel has accused Hezbollah of firing the rocket that hit a soccer field in the town of Majdal Shams over the weekend. Hezbollah denied responsibility, a rare move by the militant group.
Source: Agence France Presse
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