Macron calls on Israel to speed up troop withdrawal from southern Lebanon | Politics News

French President Emmanuel Macron is the first foreign head of state to visit Beirut since Joseph Aoun was elected president of Lebanon.

French President Emmanuel Macron has called on Israel to speed up its troop withdrawal from southern Lebanon as a withdrawal deadline approaches under the terms of a truce that ended the war with Hezbollah last year.

During a visit to Beirut on Friday, Macron also said the Lebanese army should have a full monopoly on weapons, and he expressed France's support for strengthening the Lebanese army's deployment in the south of the country.

“We need a complete withdrawal of the Israeli army,” Macron said, speaking alongside Lebanon's new president, Joseph Aunwho was commander of the Lebanese army until his election this month as head of state.

“We support… the increased power of the Lebanese armed forces and their deployment in the south of the country,” the French president said.

Macron is the first foreign head of state to visit Beirut since Aoun was elected by Lebanon's parliament to fill the vacant post of head of state on January 9, signaling a shift in the country's balance of power after a war that badly hurt Iran-linked Hezbollah weakened.

The ceasefire, which took effect on November 27 and was brokered by the US and France, requires Israeli forces to withdraw from southern Lebanon within 60 days and Hezbollah to remove all its fighters and weapons from the south.

The Lebanese army is also due to deploy alongside UN peacekeepers in the south as the Israeli army withdraws by January 26.

With just over a week to go until the deadline, Macron called for the truce to be implemented quickly.

“There are results, … but they need to be accelerated and long-lasting. There must be a complete withdrawal of Israeli forces and the Lebanese army must hold a complete monopoly on any weapons in southern Lebanon, Macron said.

A committee composed of Israeli, Lebanese, French and American delegates along with a representative of the UN peacekeeping force is tasked with overseeing the implementation of cease fire.

Macron also announced that Paris will host in the coming weeks an international conference on the reconstruction of Lebanon.

“As soon as the president (Aoun) comes to Paris in a few weeks, we will organize an international reconstruction conference around him to raise funding,” Macron said.

“The international community must prepare for massive support to rebuild infrastructure.”

Reporting from Beirut Al Jazeera's Zeina Khodr said that in the words of the French president, “spring has sprung in Lebanon.”

“He is talking about a new reality in the country, about a new leadership. … Macron's visit is part of a show of support for this new leadership,” she said.

Khodr added that in his statement to the media, Macron also addressed the reforms Lebanon must undertake, whether in the judiciary, the financial sector or the public sector, when a new Lebanese government is formed.