Israel-Gaza war: France’s Macron asks Netanyahu for ‘lasting ceasefire’

French President Emmanuel Macron demanded a “lasting ceasefire” in Gaza during a call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday, his office said, as an escalating humanitarian crisis grips the Palestinian territory.

“France will work in the coming days in cooperation with Jordan to carry out humanitarian operations in Gaza,” the French presidency added in a statement.

Macron, an ally of Netanyahu since the start of the war triggered by the unprecedented Hamas attack on Israel on October 7, told the Israeli premier of his “deepest concern” about civilian deaths and the humanitarian emergency in Gaza.

He also insisted on the importance of measures to end violence by Israeli settlers against Palestinian civilians in the occupied West Bank and prevent new planned settlements.

Netanyahu’s office said during the call the prime minister thanked Macron for “France’s involvement in defending freedom of navigation and its willingness to help restore security along Israel’s border with Lebanon”.