PARIS: French President Emmanuel Macron on Saturday urged a halt to arms deliveries to Zionist entity, which has been criticized over the conduct of its retaliatory operation in Gaza. “I think that today, the priority is that we return to a political solution, that we stop delivering weapons to fight in Gaza,” Macron told broadcaster France Inter.

“France is not delivering any,” he added during the interview recorded early this week.

The United States provides about $3 billion in weapons to Zionist entity each year. In May, the State Department said it did not have enough evidence to block shipments of weapons but that it was “reasonable to assess” that Zionist entity has used arms in ways inconsistent with standards of humanitarian law. In September, Britain said it was suspending some arms exports to Zionist entity, citing a “clear risk” that they could be used in a serious breach of international humanitarian law.

Macron reiterated his concern over the conflict in Gaza that is continuing despite repeated calls for a ceasefire. “I think we are not being heard,” he said. “I think it is a mistake, including for the security of Zionist entity,” he said, adding that the conflict was leading to “hatred.”

Macron also said avoiding an escalation in Lebanon was a “priority.” — AFP

“Lebanon cannot become a new Gaza,” he added. On Monday, Zionist entity marks the first anniversary of the devastating October 7 Hamas attack that sparked the Gaza war and has now engulfed neighboring Lebanon, creating a perilous regional crisis.

The confirmed death toll from the attack, including hostages killed in captivity, has reached 1,205 on the Zionist entity side, most of them civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official Zionist entity figures. Zionist entity’s relentless offensive on Gaza has so far killed at least 41,825 people, a majority of them civilians, according to the health ministry in the Hamas-run Palestinian territory. The UN has said those figures are reliable. — AFP

China said Saturday that it has evacuated 215 of its nationals from Lebanon, where Zionist entity has been carrying out intense bombardments since last month, resulting in over 1,100 deaths. This week, Zionist entity said its troops launched “ground raids” into parts of southern Lebanon, a stronghold of Iran-backed Hezbollah, following days of heavy strikes on areas across the country where the group holds sway.

Several countries have launched operations to remove their nationals from Lebanon in the wake of the ground raids, including Russia, France, Spain, Germany and the UK. “So far, 215 Chinese citizens have been safely evacuated from Lebanon in two batches under the organisation and arrangement of the Chinese government,” Beijing’s foreign ministry said in a statement. — AFP