French President Emmanuel Macron will receive Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati and Commander-in-Chief of the Lebanese Army Joseph Aoun on Friday in Paris, in a context of strong internal and regional tensions, the Élysée announced on Thursday. The head of the Lebanese government is expected at midday at the Élysée Palace, his press office said, while Lebanon is plunged into a major political crisis and threatened by a risk of escalation in the Middle East after Iran's attack on Israel.
The Lebanese chief of staff, who already met European counterparts in March in Italy, seeking help for his army, will also be present, added the French presidency, without further details. The army plays a crucial role in preserving Lebanon's stability. General Aoun has good relations with most parties and is sometimes cited as a solution to the political crisis shaking the country.
A country torn apart by tensions
Since the end of the mandate of President Michel Aoun (no family connection with Joseph Aoun) on October 31, 2022, Lebanese deputies have been unable to agree on appointing a successor, with Parliament being divided between the camp of the pro-Islamist movement. Iranian Hezbollah and its adversaries. Najib Mikati, at the head of a resigned government with reduced powers, de facto leads Lebanon which fears being drawn into a large-scale conflict with Israel. Since 2020, France, the former mandatory power, has been involved in the search for a solution in this country, plagued by recurring political blockages and in the midst of an economic collapse, without managing to overcome the differences between the parties.
President Macron, after having twice tried to move the lines by going to Beirut himself, entrusted a mission in this sense to his former Minister of Foreign Affairs Jean-Yves Le Drian in 2023. Since the start of the conflict in Gaza on October 7, Lebanon has regularly been the scene of exchanges of fire between Hezbollah and Israel.
Escalation of violence
The situation further worsened with the Iranian attack on Israeli territory, carried out with more than 350 drones and missiles, during the night from Saturday to Sunday, raising fears of a new regional escalation. Israel announced that it reserved
“the right to protect itself”
but gave no information on the means, date and targets of a possible operation. A local Hezbollah commander was killed Tuesday in southern Lebanon by the Israeli army, which carried out a series of strikes, with the powerful Iranian-backed formation claiming responsibility for attacks on northern Israel. Lebanon must also manage the presence on its territory of two million Syrians who fled the civil war in their country, the highest number of refugees per capita in the world.