France pledges $108m aid to Lebanon as PM Mikati seeks to expand army

Paris: France has pledged to provide 100 million euros ($108m) to support Lebanon as President Emmanuel Macron said “massive aid” was needed for the country, where Israeli attacks have displaced more than a million people.

Speaking at an international conference on Thursday, Macron condemned Israel for continuing its military offensive in Lebanon and reiterated his call for a ceasefire.

“The destruction is there. The victims are there. More violence is there. And we cannot accept this,” he said.

Macron was hosting ministers and officials from more than 70 countries and international organisations, including the European Union and regional partners, in the French capital, Paris, to raise donations for the cash-strapped Lebanese government.

French organisers hoped the financial pledges would meet the $400m that the United Nations says is urgently needed.

The head of the UN’s agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA), Philippe Lazzarini, wrote on X that he would ask for further support so that the organisation can remain “a key humanitarian responder and a stabilising force” with its work to aid millions of refugees across the region.

France also aims to strengthen Lebanon’s armed forces so they can “deploy more broadly and efficiently” in the country’s south as part of a potential deal that could see Hezbollah withdraw its forces from the border.

Speaking alongside Marcron, acting Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati said his government had decided to recruit more troops and could deploy 8,000 soldiers as part of a plan to implement a ceasefire and UN Security Council (UNSC) resolution, which calls for the army to be deployed in southern Lebanon.

He added that Lebanon would need international financial support to equip and train the army.

The European Union’s foreign policy chief, Josep Borrell, told reporters that the 27-nation bloc will give the Lebanese army 20 million euros ($21.59m) this year and 40 million euros ($43.18m) next year.