French President Emmanuel Macron is facing renewed criticism for his lack of support for President Donald Trump’s war against Iran and demands to include Lebanon in the current ceasefire, as historic talks between Israel and Lebanon begin on Tuesday.
The historic meeting between Lebanon, a former French mandate, and Israel, mediated by President Trump, will take place at the ambassadorial level as hopes for an agreement develop – most notably without French involvement. Secretary of State Marco Rubio is expected to receive the ambassadors of both countries.
The Jerusalem Post reported that the Israeli government had requested that France be excluded from the talks. An Israeli official told the newspaper that “France’s behavior over the past year — including initiatives aimed at limiting Israel’s ability to fight in Iran, and a complete lack of willingness to take concrete steps to help Lebanon disarm Hezbollah — has led Israel to view France as a dishonest mediator.”
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French President Emmanuel Macron speaks during a meeting with President Trump and other world leaders. (Win McNamee/Getty Images)
On Monday, Hezbollah chief Naim Qassem called on the Lebanese government to cancel Tuesday’s meeting in Washington, describing the talks as pointless. In a televised speech, Qassem said the “armed” group will continue to fight Israeli attacks on Lebanon.
Hezbollah violated a ceasefire in March to join the war against its patron, Iran, when it launched missiles at Israel after the US-Israeli joint attack on the Islamic Republic began. Yet Macron has demanded Israel stop attacking Hezbollah’s terror infrastructure in Lebanon.
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Hezbollah al-Mahdi scouts parade with large portraits of Iran’s late leader, Ayatollah Khomeini, in the foreground, and Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, in the background, during an event celebrating Jerusalem Day, or Al-Quds Day, in the southern city of Nabatiyeh, Lebanon, Thursday, August 1, 2013. (Hussein Malla/AP Photo)
The former head of research at the Israeli Defense Forces’ Military Intelligence Directorate, Kuperwasser, added that “the Americans want us to work with the Lebanese together with the military.” [in Lebanon]. Our expectations are very similar. We want Lebanon to do something about Hezbollah, something real, and not just make statements and promises. We believe we have helped them by weakening Hezbollah militarily since they decided to launch rockets on March 2. If there is a breakthrough, Lebanon has a lot to gain,” but said it had to do so. “Disarm Hezbollah.”
Macron has faced accusations over the years that he has normalized Hezbollah. His government, unlike Germany, the US, Canada, the Netherlands, Japan, Austria and many other Western and non-Western countries, refuses to designate the entire Hezbollah organization as a terrorist entity. France has classified Hezbollah’s ‘military wing’ as a terrorist organization but refused to ban its ‘political wing’. Hezbollah sees itself as a united movement without branches.
French politician François-Xavier Bellamy, Member of the European Parliament for the Republican Party, said on French television last week that “France must stop normalizing Hezbollah.” Macron sparked outrage in 2020 when he reportedly held a private conversation with a top elected Hezbollah official, according to Paris daily Le Figaro.
Smoke rises from Israeli airstrikes in Dahiyeh, a southern suburb of Beirut, Lebanon, Sunday, April 5, 2026. (Emilio Morenatti/AP)
A French diplomat told the Times of Israel that “what we hope for is not a ticket to the meeting, but that Israel stops its offensive against Lebanon.”
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Hezbollah launches long-range missiles from Lebanon into northern Israel within 48 hours of attacking Iran, escalating the spreading conflict during Operation Epic Fury. (Hadi Mizban/AP)
On Saturday, Macron again expressed his desire for a ceasefire, writing on
He added: ‘Strangely, the Lebanese President and Prime Minister refused to invite the Lebanese Foreign Minister to the talks in Washington, which provoked an Israeli representation, including at ambassadorial level, showing that Hezbollah still has a strong influence on the Lebanese government. The militia is rejected by the local population and fears that a meeting in DC would further banish Hezbollah.’
Iran is rebuilding ties with Hezbollah as Trump issues a 10- to 15-day deadline. (Fadel Itani/NurPhoto)
Sethrida Geagea, a member of parliament from the Lebanese Forces Party, posted an open letter to Nabih Berri, the powerful speaker of the Lebanese parliament and leader of the Shia Amal movement, on She indirectly criticized Hezbollah and its terrorist army within the state. Geagea appealed to Berri to unite the Lebanese so that they would be “protected by a single army.”
Without mentioning Hezbollah by name, her letter stated that young Shias are engaged in a war that has nothing to do with them, and that the conflict is really about an Iranian decision to retaliate for the joint US-Israeli war that killed the Islamic Republic’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei on February 28.
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Reuters contributed to this report.
