Spain rejects military escalation in southern Lebanon and demands respect for the ceasefire

The Diplomat Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares condemned the military escalation in southern Lebanon on Tuesday and demanded that the parties “fully respect the April 16 ceasefire.” “The escalation of violence in southern Lebanon is unjustified,” Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares posted on social media on Tuesday. “It violates the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the country, obstructs the ongoing direct talks, exacerbates the humanitarian crisis, and undermines international efforts to consolidate the ceasefire,” he warned. “We demand that the parties fully respect the April 16 ceasefire,” Albares continued. “Spain supports international initiatives for de-escalation and the Lebanese government in its efforts to restore the state monopoly on the use of force throughout the country,” he concluded. Despite the ceasefire agreement of April 16, the Israeli army has intensified its offensive in southern Lebanon, and the Lebanese Shiite militia Hezbollah has continued its drone and rocket attacks against Israeli positions both in southern Lebanon and in northern Israel. The UN, through Stéphane Dujarric, spokesperson for Secretary-General António Guterres, has expressed “deep alarm at the escalation of military activity in southern Lebanon and beyond” and has urged “all actors to respect the cessation of hostilities and avoid further escalation.” Humanitarian aid On Tuesday, the Council of Ministers approved a declaration of emergency to facilitate the procurement of humanitarian aid for the Lebanese population. According to the government, the escalation of violence in Lebanon has triggered a humanitarian crisis with more than 2,000 deaths and 1.2 million internally displaced persons, including over 140,000 people living in collective shelters, according to data from the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Lebanese authorities, through the Lebanese Mission to the European Union and the Embassy of the Lebanese Republic in the Kingdom of Spain, requested a list of essential goods to meet the needs of internally displaced persons in Lebanon. The humanitarian aid consisted of the purchase and shipment of 30,800 hygiene kits for families, women, men, and babies, which were transported by sea from Valencia to Beirut, departing on May 13, and 2,250 family kitchen kits, purchased and shipped by land from Jordan to Lebanon, departing on May 7. Lebanese authorities and the Jordan Hashemite Charity Organization (JHCO) will be responsible for their distribution. The total cost of the operation amounted to €530,115.72, with a maximum budget of €600,000.

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