UPDATE ON THE SITUATION – The European Union is strengthening its sanctions against Iran, accused of supporting Russia's war effort against Ukraine. A decision that Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar welcomed this Tuesday.
The Israeli Foreign Minister welcomes new European Union sanctions against Iran, as conflicts continue in the Middle East. The US president's special envoy, Amos Hochstein, arrived in Lebanon on Tuesday for talks with local officials, as part of efforts to achieve a ceasefire between Lebanese Hezbollah and Israel. Le Figaro takes stock of the situation this Tuesday, November 19.
New EU sanctions against Iran
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar on Tuesday welcomed the new sanctions announced by the European Union against Iran, calling them“necessary steps” against “the Iranian threat”. The European Union announced Monday that it had strengthened its sanctions against Iran, accused of supporting Russia's war effort against Ukraine by delivering drones and missiles.
These new sanctions are “necessary steps in the international community's fight against the Iranian threat, which poses the greatest danger to the security and stability of the Middle East, Europe and the entire world”wrote Saar on the social network “will harm Iranian missile and drone production processes, make it more difficult to transport Iranian weapons by sea to conflict zones and increase economic pressure on the ayatollahs' regime”he estimated.
The measures announced on Monday by the Twenty-Seven prohibit the export, transfer or supply from the EU of components used in the manufacture of missiles or drones by Iran. They also provide for a ban on the use of Iranian ports, such as Amirabad or Anzali on the Caspian Sea, used for the transfer of drones, missiles or technologies intended to manufacture them.
The EU also prohibits assistance to any ship involved in these transfers, except for requests for humanitarian aid or due to danger threatening the ship and its crew. Iran rejects Western accusations outright. Israel, Iran's sworn enemy, is currently at open war against two Islamist movements supported by Tehran, Palestinian Hamas in the Gaza Strip and Hezbollah in Lebanon.
Around 40 projectiles fired towards Israel from Lebanon
Around 40 projectiles were fired from Lebanon into Israel on Tuesday, the Israeli army announced in separate statements, with emergency services reporting four minor injuries. The army said it had “identified” Tuesday morning “about five projectiles” in the Sharon plain and the Tel Aviv metropolitan area, as well as«environ 25 projectiles» in Galilee, and «dix» in the north of this region, all “from Lebanon”.
Warning sirens sounded in these regions and the army clarified that “some projectiles were intercepted, while others fell in uninhabited areas”. In the Sharon plain, four people were slightly injured by broken ice, said a spokesperson for Magen David Adom rescuers, the Israeli equivalent of the Red Cross.
Lebanon: the American president's special envoy is in Beirut
The US president's special envoy, Amos Hochstein, arrived in Lebanon on Tuesday for talks with local officials as part of efforts to achieve a ceasefire between Lebanese Hezbollah and Israel, according to state media. The American ambassador to Lebanon submitted a proposal to Lebanese officials last Thursday aimed at putting an end to this conflict.
“US President Amos Hochstein’s special envoy arrived at Beirut’s Rafic Hariri International Airport”indicated the national information agency (Ani). On Monday, a Lebanese official who follows the negotiations assured that Lebanon had a point of view “very positive” regarding the American ceasefire proposal.
“We are finalizing the final remarks”said this official, speaking on condition of anonymity. A second official assured him that Lebanon was awaiting the arrival of Hochstein “to study certain points with him”.
