Washington, Paris call for ‘maximum restraint’ in region

French Foreign Ministry spokesman Christophe Lemoyne said the two ministers shared “concern in the face of rising tensions” in the region, and that they “agreed to continue calling on all parties to exercise maximum restraint in order to avoid any regional escalation that could have devastating repercussions for the countries of the region.”

Sigourney and Blinken stressed the continuation of “joint” efforts to reach a “sustainable” ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, which has been witnessing an ongoing and destructive war for about ten months between Israel and Hamas.

Fears of a wider regional conflict are growing as Iran and its allies vow to respond to the assassination of Hamas political bureau chief Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran in an operation attributed to Israel, the assassination of senior Hezbollah leader Fouad Shukr in an Israeli strike near Beirut, and as the United States strengthens its military presence in the region.

Western countries have intensified their calls for their citizens to leave Lebanon and Iran, with some airlines announcing the suspension of their flights.

France has called on its non-resident citizens in Iran who are still in the country to leave as soon as possible. However, Paris has not followed suit, with Washington and London urging their citizens to leave Lebanon amid the tension.

Since the outbreak of the war in Gaza, France has “officially” recommended that its citizens not visit Lebanon, “including for tourist and family visits,” unless there are “compelling reasons” to do so.

While Iranian leaders, as well as Lebanon’s Hezbollah and Palestine’s Hamas, have vowed to avenge the killing of Haniyeh and Shukr, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has stressed that his country is at a “very high level” of readiness for any “defensive and offensive” scenario.

The US Department of Defense announced on Friday that in light of “the potential for regional escalation by Iran or its partners and proxies,” Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin ordered “adjustments to the US military posture to improve the protection of US forces, increase support for the defense of Israel, and ensure the readiness of the United States to respond to a variety of contingencies.”