Race against time to avoid conflagration in Lebanon: EU

Brussels: The EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said on Friday that the international community must accelerate efforts for a political solution to end the fighting in Lebanon and prevent “conflagration”.

In a statement issued a day after a conference on aid for Lebanon in France, Borrell said the first step should be a “ceasefire” between Israel and Hezbollah.

“We are currently engaged in a race against time between the start of a possible political process in Lebanon and a generalised conflagration with unimaginable consequences,” Borrell said.

“Without a suspension of hostilities, nothing will be possible,” he added.

Borrell said that once the fighting stops, Lebanon needs to hold long-postponed presidential elections “as soon as possible.”

He said the Lebanese Armed Forces should become the “only military force” in the south of the country, where Israel is engaged in ground fighting with Hezbollah.

He said the U.N. peacekeeping mission in the region should also be strengthened.

International calls to end the fighting have so far failed to end fighting in the region.

The Paris Conference on Aid for Conflict-torn Lebanon raised nearly $800 million for humanitarian aid, but there was little diplomatic progress.

Israel has been at war with Hezbollah in Lebanon since late last month, in an effort to secure its northern border after nearly a year of cross-border firing by the Iran-backed armed group.

Following the October 7, 2023, attack on Israel, Hezbollah launched low-intensity attacks on Israel in support of its Palestinian ally Hamas, the deadliest attack in its history.

The attack led to Israel switching its focus to Lebanon after nearly a year of war in Gaza and launching a massive bombing campaign last month mainly targeting Hezbollah strongholds across the country, sending in ground troops on September 30. At least 1,580 people have been killed in the war in Lebanon, according to Lebanese health ministry data compiled by AFP.