France helps raise $1B for Lebanon aid – POLITICO

PARIS — France has helped raise $800 million in humanitarian aid and $200 million in security assistance to support Lebanon and the more than 1 million people displaced there by the recent Israeli invasion, French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot said on Thursday.

President Emmanuel Macron’s government helped secure the donation at a conference in Paris, where senior officials from 70 countries and international organizations have gathered. In his opening speech Thursday morning, Macron said France would give €100 million.

Macron also used the address to call for the war to “end as soon as possible” in southern Lebanon, where the Israel Defense Forces are attempting to dismantle the Hezbollah militant group through a combination of airstrikes and ground operations.