Israel attacks Southern Lebanon, France calls for emergency UN Security Council meeting

Moscow (ANTARA) - France has called for an emergency United Nations Security Council (UNSC) session in response to Israel’s military operation in southern Lebanon, French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said on Sunday. ‘I have requested an emergency UNSC session,’ Barrot said in an interview with BFM TV. He described Israel’s actions as unacceptable and the invasion of the neighbouring country as a ‘serious mistake’, stressing that nothing could justify Israel’s continued military action in Lebanon or further occupation of Lebanese territory. Previously, Israel’s Defence Minister stated that the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) had seized the strategic Beaufort Castle in southern Lebanon. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu then ordered military forces to expand operations against Lebanon’s Hezbollah movement and tighten surveillance in southern Lebanon regions. Israel’s expanding attacks on Lebanon have been met with increasingly intense rocket strikes from Hezbollah targeting several Israeli cities. Air raid sirens have sounded in Kiryat Shmona, Nahariya, Safed, Karmiel, and other locations. The Home Front Command has tightened rules on gatherings and educational institutions in the northern regions.