An Israeli official said that “France’s conduct over the past year…has led Israel to view France as an unfair mediator.”
French President Emmanuel Macron and Lebanese President Joseph Aoun attend a meeting with Syria’s interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa joining remotely, during a visit at the Elysee Palace in Paris, France, March 28, 2025.(photo credit: REUTERS/Sarah Meyssonnier/Pool)ByAMICHAI STEINIsrael has refused to allow France to be involved in the direct talks between it and Lebanon, which are set to begin next week in Washington, two sources told The Jerusalem Post on Friday.
An Israeli official said that “France’s conduct 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 an unfair mediator.”
The Israeli decision follows growing anger over France’s behavior in recent months, particularly since the joint Israeli-American strike against Iran. France refused to allow US aircraft carrying weapons to Israel to pass through its airspace.
In addition, since Hezbollah began firing a day after the Israeli-American strike on Iran, French President Emmanuel Macron and other senior French officials have been pressuring Israel not to launch a ground operation in Lebanon.
IDF soldiers operating in southern Lebanon, April 10, 2026. (credit: IDF SPOKESPERSON UNIT)
Lebanon tries to hold direct negotiations
Lebanon itself has, in recent weeks, sought to hold direct negotiations with Israel, mainly in order to prevent a large-scale Israeli military operation in the country. These overtures were made through both senior officials in the Trump administration and officials in the French government.
While the Trump administration told the Lebanese, “First take serious steps to disarm Hezbollah, and then we will speak with Israel,” the French government, led by President Macron – who also spoke several times with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on the issue – attempted to promote direct talks. However, Israel showed little interest, maintaining that the Lebanese government is not acting against Hezbollah and that Israel therefore has no choice but to operate on Lebanese territory itself.
The shift in Israel’s position – and its decision to proceed with talks with Lebanon – comes after significant strikes and operations against the terrorist organization, as well as following a US request, including during a conversation between Netanyahu and Trump, to “scale back” military activity in Lebanon in order to allow negotiations with Iran to move forward.
The representatives in the talks, which are expected to begin Tuesday at the State Department, will be Israel’s ambassador to Washington, Yechiel Leiter, and Lebanon’s ambassador to the United States, Nada Hamadeh. The American mediator will be Michel Issa, the US ambassador to Lebanon.
The Israeli military says about 100 terror targets hit across Lebanon in coordinated assault planned over weeks.
Israeli Air Force fighter jet seen in central Israel amid the ongoing war between Israel-U.S. and Iran, March 18, 2026. Photo by Nati Shohat/Flash90.
( Apr. 8, 2026 / JNS )
The Israel Defense Forces on Wednesday carried out its largest coordinated strikes against Hezbollah terror targets in Lebanon since the start of “Operation Roaring Lion,” hitting about 100 sites across multiple areas simultaneously within 10 minutes.
The large-scale wave of attacks targeted Hezbollah headquarters, military infrastructure and command-and-control centers in Beirut, the Beqaa Valley and Southern Lebanon, according to the Israeli army.
The targets included intelligence command centers and central headquarters used to direct and plan attacks against IDF troops and Israeli civilians; infrastructure tied to Hezbollah’s rocket and naval units; and assets belonging to the Radwan Force and the Aerial (127) Unit.
The IDF said the operation was based on precise intelligence and had been planned over several weeks by the Operations Directorate, Intelligence Directorate, Israeli Air Force and Northern Command to “deepen the damage” to Iran’s Lebanese proxy.
“Most of the infrastructure that was struck was located within the heart of the civilian population, as part of Hezbollah’s cynical exploitation of Lebanese civilians as human shields in order to safeguard its operations,” the military said.
Prior to the strikes, measures were taken to mitigate harm to uninvolved individuals as much as possible, it added.
“The Hezbollah terror organization deliberately decided to join the war, operating on behalf of the Iranian terror regime while harming the State of Lebanon and its civilians. The State of Lebanon and its civilians must refuse Hezbollah’s entrenchment in civilian areas and its weapon build-up capabilities,” the IDF continued.
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said in a recorded video that hundreds of terrorists were hit in the IAF surprise attack, which constituted “the largest concentrated strike Hezbollah has suffered since the ‘Pager Operation.’”
Katz was referring to the Mossad’s Sept. 17-18, 2024, pager attacks that wounded thousands of Hezbollah operatives, after the Iranian proxy launched a war against the Jewish state a day after Hamas’s Oct. 7, 2023, massacre.
Defense Minister Israel Katz and IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir attend a situation assessment at the Defense Ministry in Tel Aviv, March 25, 2026. Photo by Elad Malka/Israel Ministry of Defense.
On Wednesday, Katz further congratulated the IDF on the “flawless execution, and … Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for leading the decision and insisting on separating the arenas between Iran and Lebanon.”
He went on to say that Jerusalem insisted on distinguishing between Iran and Lebanon, so that Israel can “change the reality in Lebanon and remove threats from the residents of the north.”
The minister further vowed that Israel is not the same as it was prior to Oct. 7 and will not tolerate any threat or harm to its citizens, something that Hezbollah Secretary-General Naim Qassem “did not understand.”
Qassem’s “personal turn will also come,” Katz threatened, referring to the fate of his predecessor, Hassan Nasrallah, who was eliminated on Sep. 27, 2024.
“We promised to bring security to the residents of the north—and that is exactly what we will do,” he added.
Israel Defense Forces soldiers during operations in Southern Lebanon, March 2026. Credit: IDF.
Netanyahu issued a statement Wednesday expressing support for the truce, but said it “does not include Lebanon.”
IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir said on Tuesday that troops are “deepening the multi-focal effort to degrade the Hezbollah terrorist organization.”
“We continue to establish a forward defense posture to prevent direct fire toward our communities, while simultaneously operating against surface-to-surface fire,” he said.
“In every encounter, our troops prevail over Hezbollah. War carries heavy costs, and we will continue to act to remove threats against our civilians,” he added.
IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir (right) and Northern Command chief Maj. Gen. Rafi Milo (left) during a situational assessment at Northern Command, March 16, 2026. Credit: IDF
The IDF has struck more than 3,500 targets and killed more than 1,000 Hezbollah terrorists in Lebanon since the Iranian-backed group entered the war in support of Tehran on March 2.
Hezbollah began firing rockets and suicide drones at Israel after the assassination of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was targeted in the opening strikes of “Operation Roaring Lion” on Feb. 28.
In response to Hezbollah’s violation of the U.S.-brokered Nov. 27, 2024, truce agreement, Jerusalem launched an aerial campaign against the Iranian proxy and ordered IDF troops to advance and take control of additional areas in Southern Lebanon to halt cross-border attacks.
The U.S. president hailed the two-week ceasefire agreement with Tehran, suggesting the deal could mark the beginning of a ‘golden age’ in the Middle East.
U.S. President Donald Trump delivers remarks at Verst Logistics Manufacturing in Hebron, Ky., March 11, 2026. Credit: Joyce N. Boghosian/White House.
( Apr. 8, 2026 / JNS )
U.S. President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that Tehran will not possess enriched uranium and that together with Washington they will “dig up and remove all of the deeply buried … nuclear ‘dust.’”
Posting on Truth Social, the president said that the reportedly 440.9 kilograms of uranium has been under satellite surveillance since “Operation Midnight Hammer” in June.
“Nothing has been touched from the date of attack. We are, and will be, talking Tariff and Sanctions relief with Iran,” Trump wrote.
Many of the 15 points have already been agreed to,” he added, referring to the plan, presented to Iran by the United States, toend the con flict, which started on Feb. 28 during a joint U.S.-Israeli preemptive attack on the Islamic Republic.
Iran, on the other hand, proposed its own 10-point plan, which is “a workable basis on which to negotiate,” Trump stated on Tuesday.
The sides are expected to meet in Islamabad, Pakistan later this week to begin negotiations.
U.S. President Donald Trump signs an executive order creating an anti-fraud task force to be led by U.S. Vice President JD Vance, March 16, 2026. Credit: Molly Riley/White House.
Molly Riley/Official White House Photo by Molly Riley
In an earlier post on Wednesday, Trump hailed the two-week ceasefire agreement with Iran, suggesting the deal could mark the beginning of a ‘golden age’ in the Middle East.
“A big day for World Peace! Iran wants it to happen, they’ve had enough! Likewise, so has everyone else!” Trump posted on Truth Social.
“The United States of America will be helping with the traffic buildup in the Strait of Hormuz. There will be lots of positive action! Big money will be made. Iran can start the reconstruction process. We’ll be loading up with supplies of all kinds, and just ‘hangin’ around’ in order to make sure that everything goes well,” he continued.
“I feel confident that it will. Just like we are experiencing in the U.S., this could be the Golden Age of the Middle East!!!” he added.
Trump said on Tuesday evening that he agreed to a “double-sided ceasefire” with Iran after talking to the Pakistani prime minister, who “requested that I hold off the destructive force being sent tonight to Iran.”
If the Iranian regime agrees to the “complete, immediate and safe opening of the Strait of Hormuz, I agree to suspend the bombing and attack of Iran for a period of two weeks,” Trump stated.
