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88 countries call for immediate ceasefire in Lebanon

On Saturday, 88 countries, members of the Organisation internationale de la Francophonie (OIF) which includes France, Canada and Belgium, unanimously called for an immediate and lasting ceasefire in Lebanon.

“We expressed our solidarity with Lebanon. We unanimously called for an immediate and lasting ceasefire and reaffirmed our commitment to de-escalating tensions in the region. We want peace and security for all,” French President Emmanuel Macron said at the conclusion of the 19th Francophnie two-day Summit in Paris on Saturday, attended by leaders of those countries, including Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

88 countries call for immediate ceasefire in Lebanon

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reacted angrily to the move, describing it as “disgraceful,” and the countries involved as shameful.

“Today, Israel is defending itself on seven fronts against the enemies of civilization,”he said in a statement Saturday night.

“We are fighting in Gaza against Hamas, the savages who murdered, raped, beheaded and burned our people on October 7th.”

“We are fighting in Lebanon against Hezbollah, the most heavily armed terror organization in the world, which was planning an even greater massacre than October 7th on our Northern border, and that has rocketed Israeli towns and cities for nearly a year,” Mr Netanyahu said.

“We are fighting against the Houthis in Yemen, and the Shiite militias in Iraq and Syria, that together have launched hundreds of drones and missile attacks against Israel.”

“We are fighting against terrorists in Judea and Samaria, who are trying to murder civilians in the heart of our cities,” the Israeli prime minister said.

“And we are fighting against Iran, which last week fired over 200 ballistic missiles directly at Israel and which stands behind this seven front war against Israel.”

“As Israel fights the forces of barbarism led by Iran, all civilized countries should be standing firmly by Israel’s side,” the prime minister asserted.

“Yet President Macron and other western leaders are now calling for arms embargoes against Israel.”

“Shame on them,” he said.

“Is Iran imposing an arms embargo on Hezbollah, on the Houthis, on Hamas and on its other proxies?”

“Of course not. This axis of terror stands together,” Mr Netanyahu said.

“But countries who supposedly oppose this terror axis call for an arms embargo on Israel. What a disgrace!”

“Israel will win with or without their support. But their shame will continue long after the war is won,” he said.

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The Organisation internationale de la Francophonie (OIF) is an international organization composed of 88 member states and governments, including full members, associate members, and observers. Among the full members are countries from Africa, Europe, the Americas, and Asia. These include Albania, Andorra, Armenia, Belgium, Benin, Bulgaria, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cambodia, Cameroon, Canada, Cape Verde, the Central African Republic, Chad, Comoros, the Republic of the Congo, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Cte d’Ivoire, Djibouti, Dominica, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, France, Gabon, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Haiti, Laos, Lebanon, Luxembourg, Madagascar, Mali, Mauritania, Mauritius, Moldova, Monaco, Morocco, Niger, Romania, Rwanda, Saint Lucia, Sao Tome and Principe, Senegal, Seychelles, Switzerland, Togo, Tunisia, Vanuatu, and Vietnam.

The associate members of the OIF include Argentina, Cyprus, Ghana, Kosovo, Mozambique, Qatar, and Serbia. These countries participate in the organization’s activities, contributing to various initiatives while having a different level of involvement compared to full members.

The organization also includes a group of observer members, which extends the influence of the Francophonie to even more regions of the world. These observers are Austria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Czech Republic, Dominica, Estonia, the Gambia, Georgia, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Mexico, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Poland, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Korea, Thailand, Ukraine, the United Arab Emirates, and Uruguay. As observers, these countries are involved in promoting the objectives of the Francophonie, such as linguistic and cultural diversity, without full voting rights.

Together, these diverse nations represent the global community that values the French language and culture, contributing to mutual cooperation in areas such as education, sustainable development, and peacebuilding across different continents.

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