Baerbock warns of Lebanon destabilization as Germany pledges €60m aid

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Baerbock warns of Lebanon destabilization as Germany pledges €60m aid

Germany is pledging an additional €60 million ($64.7 million) in humanitarian aid to Lebanon, as Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock warns that the conflict between ******* and Hezbollah could lead to the “complete destabilization” of the country.

******* Chancellor Olaf Scholz announced the support late on Wednesday during a phone call with Lebanese caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati, according to government spokesman Steffen Hebestreit.

Baerbock visited Beirut on Wednesday, warning of dangerous consequences for the wider Middle East if the conflict between ******* and the Iran-backed Hezbollah militia further escalated.

“A complete destabilization of the country would be fatal for the most religiously diverse society in the Middle East, and also for the entire region,” Baerbock said in the Lebanese capital ahead of talks with Lebanese politicians and aid organizations.

The visit, which was not previously announced due to security reasons, was Baerbock’s first trip to Lebanon since ******* escalated its conflict with Hezbollah in September, launching a ground offensive into southern Lebanon and a wave of airstrikes in Beirut in the most significant fighting in the country since the 2006 war.

*******’s operation has ******* hundreds of Lebanese and caused hundreds of thousands to flee southern Lebanon.

It has intensified in recent days, with major missile strikes on Hezbollah targets in Beirut.

Baerbock said in Beirut that *******’s campaign has “succeeded in significantly weakening the Hezbollah ********** organization.”

She was set to travel onwards to Paris to take part in an international aid conference for Lebanon on Thursday, which will focus on providing support for Lebanon’s war-stricken population and rebuilding the country into a stable, functioning state.

Participants include Lebanon’s international partners, the UN, the ********* Union, and various regional and civil society organizations.

“Now we need to work with our partners in the US, Europe and the ***** world to find a viable diplomatic solution that safeguards the legitimate security interests of ******* and Lebanon,” Baerbock stated.

The minister said the key to peace ***** in the UN Security Council Resolution 1701, which calls for Hezbollah to withdraw from southern Lebanon in order to protect residents of northern *******.

The Lebanese military – which has attempted to remain neutral in the conflict between ******* and Hezbollah – has an important role to play in enforcing the resolution, Baerbock said, ahead of talks with its top commander, Joseph Aoun.

Tight schedule of meetings

Amid repeated ******** strikes on the Lebanese capital in recent days, Baerbock’s visit followed a tight schedule, with the exact timings and locations of her meetings being communicated to ******* in advance.

She first met the speaker of the Lebanese parliament, Nabih Berri, whose is seen as close to Hezbollah.

At a crisis response centre of the Lebanese Red Cross, she was briefed by humanitarian workers, who said they had recently come under ***** despite publicizing their deployment.

In a statement, Baerbock highlighted that the humanitarian situation is becoming increasingly desperate in Lebanon amid the ongoing fighting.

She condemned “how irresponsibly terrorists hide behind civilians and continue to ***** rockets at *******,” while demanding that ******* respect international humanitarian law and protect innocents.

She also insisted that UN peacekeepers must be protected, after a number of attacks on the ******* Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) were attributed to ******** forces in recent weeks.

“Any deliberate ******* on UN peacekeepers is a violation of international humanitarian law,” she warned.

Baerbock later held a video call from the ******* embassy in Beirut with UNIFIL commander Aroldo Sáenz and Richard Kesten, the ******* admiral heading UNIFIL’s maritime task force.

Baerbock demands aid for northern Gaza, defends arms for *******

Baerbock also called on the ******** government to allow more humanitarian aid into northern Gaza, as she defended ongoing arms deliveries to *******.

The ******* foreign minister said the situation “especially in northern Gaza is becoming more desperate by the day” amid a fresh ******** offensive.

Northern Gaza has been cut off for 19 days, Baerbock said, with humanitarian aid “only trickling in.”

Earlier this year, the ******** government promised to “flood” the Gaza Strip with aid, Baerbock recalled. “This humanitarian aid must arrive in Gaza,” she insisted.

“There is an obligation under international law to provide humanitarian aid,” she added.

She further highlighted the International Court of Justice’s ruling that ******* must provide civilians in Gaza with aid.

“This order is binding on *******, on its government, under international law,” she emphasized.

However, Baerbock insisted that Germany continues to support ******* “including with weapons” in its right to self-defence.

All arms deliveries are subject to international humanitarian law, she maintained.

“The ******** government bears responsibility for ensuring that international humanitarian law is observed,” the minister said.

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******* Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock is briefed on the safety, security and strategic management during her visit to the Red Cross Crisis Response Center in Hazmieh, southeast of Beirut. Marwan Naamani/dpa

data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///ywAAAAAAQABAAACAUwAOw==data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///ywAAAAAAQABAAACAUwAOw==

******* Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock is briefed on the safety, security and strategic management during her visit to the Red Cross Crisis Response Center in Hazmieh, southeast of Beirut. Marwan Naamani/dpa

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