Israeli Defense Minister Rejects French Plan to Reduce Tensions with Hezbollah

The Israeli Defense Minister rejected the proposal announced by the French President regarding the formation of a trilateral commission involving Israel, France, and the United States to reduce border tensions between Israel and Hezbollah. General Yoav Galant stated on Friday, June 15, that while Israel is engaged in the 'most just battle' and defending its people, France has adopted 'hostile policies against Israel.' Emmanuel Macron had announced on Thursday, during the G7 summit in Italy, an 'agreement' to form a trilateral committee to explore ways to reduce tensions between Israel and Hezbollah. Israeli public broadcaster Kan reported on Friday that Israeli officials welcomed France's initiative and that negotiations regarding the formation of the trilateral commission had begun. However, the Israeli Defense Minister, in his first public comments regarding the intensification of French mediation in this border crisis, stated, 'Israel will not be a party to the trilateral framework proposed by France.' Yoav Galant asserted that France has ignored the crimes of the extremist group Hamas against Israeli children, women, and men due to its recent 'hostile policies' against Israel. Galant also wrote on X that the crimes of Hamas are committed solely because these children and women are Jewish. France traditionally has influence in Lebanon. The French ambassador in Tel Aviv stated on Thursday in an interview with Kan that the escalation of border conflicts between Israel and Hezbollah into a war on Lebanese soil would be 'a mistake' and a 'costly path.' Hezbollah's attacks on northern Israel's border areas on Friday marked the third consecutive day of broader and shorter-duration attacks compared to the previous 250 days. According to Israeli media, Hezbollah's attacks damaged several homes of residents evacuated from the northern border city of Kiryat Shmona, and more farms and public places were engulfed in fires caused by rocket impacts. David Azulai, head of the Metula city council, reported that in Hezbollah's rocket attacks on Friday morning, two houses and an unoccupied bus were burned, leading to a regional fire. According to Haaretz, Israeli Health Minister Uriel Busso held an emergency meeting on Friday with managers of hospitals in northern areas regarding the readiness of medical centers in light of the worsening situation. Several politicians and mayors from northern Israel have urged Benjamin Netanyahu's government not to limit responses to Hezbollah's movements and to escalate the situation into a war against the group on Lebanese soil. Hezbollah claimed responsibility for the rocket fire towards northern Galilee, Kiryat Shmona, and the Israeli area of Kfar Sald. Following the killing of four senior military officials of the group during a gathering at one of the commander's homes in the town of Jouya in an Israeli airstrike on Tuesday night, Hezbollah fired approximately 300 rockets of various ranges at Israel. On Thursday, Hezbollah attacked nine Israeli military sites in an unprecedented scale. The Israeli army reported that Hezbollah sent 16 suicide drones into Israeli airspace from Wednesday morning, of which 11 were intercepted, while the rest caused damage. Lebanese and regional media reported that in an Israeli airstrike on a three-story building in the town of Janata near the port of Tyre on Friday morning, two people were killed and 14 others injured. Some Arabic-language media in the region claimed that Hashem Safi al-Din, the number two man in Hezbollah and head of the organization's executive council, was targeted. However, this has not been confirmed by any Israeli official or source. Hezbollah entered military operations against Israel one day after the extremist group Hamas attacked Israeli territory, linking the end of this operation to the cessation of the Israeli army's war in Gaza. During this period, Hezbollah has lost about 350 of its forces, and over 90 Lebanese civilians have been killed in Israeli attacks. Hezbollah's attacks on northern Israel have so far resulted in the deaths of 15 military personnel and 11 civilians, causing damage to cities in the north and leading to the evacuation of tens of thousands of residents.