BEIRUT (AP) — French Foreign Minister Stéphane Séjourné arrived in Lebanon on Sunday as part of diplomatic attempts to broker a de-escalation in the conflict on the Lebanon-Israel border. Séjourné met with United Nations peacekeeping forces in south Lebanon and with Lebanon’s parliament speaker, army chief, foreign minister and caretaker prime minister. France “is refusing to accept the worst-case scenario” of a full-scale war in Lebanon, he told journalists after the meetings. “In southern Lebanon, the war is already here, even if it’s not called by that name, and it’s the civilian population who’s paying the price,” he said. The Lebanese militant group Hezbollah has exchanged near-daily strikes with Israeli forces in the border region — and sometimes beyond — for almost seven months against the backdrop of Israel’s war against Hezbollah ally Hamas in Gaza. |
Accelerated expansion of China's services industry in March: dataChina's LandLocal Delicacy Spices up Tourism in Northwest China CityInside the boom: Why German companies flock to a Chinese townDiscovering Ocean's Poetic CharmsAsian Film Festival Welcomes Week of Chinese WorksDiscovering Ocean's Poetic CharmsWondrous Xinjiang: Project Renovating Old Residences Revitalizes Ancient CityGerman, Chinese Students Unite in Chinese Painting at Qingdao No. 9 High SchoolGLOBALink