Tehran: Iran’s president told his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron the US and Europe must urge Israel to accept a ceasefire in Gaza in order to lower tensions in the Middle East.
Masoud Pezeshkian’s comments hint at a diplomatic path to de-escalation as Israel braces for retaliation for the killing of a top Hamas leader in Tehran.
“If the US and western countries really want to prevent war and insecurity in the region, they should convince this regime to stop the genocide and attacks in Gaza and accept a cease-fire,”
Pezeshkian told Macron in a phone call, according to an Iranian government statement.
Avoiding war is one of Iran’s “fundamental principles,” he added.
A person familiar with the call said Macron and Pezeshkian discussed the need to avoid all-out conflict.
The Islamic Republic, Hamas’s main backer, has repeatedly vowed to avenge the killing of the group’s political leader Ismail Haniyeh in its capital city last week, while saying it doesn’t want to further escalate tensions. Israel has neither confirmed nor denied responsibility for Haniyeh’s death.
The incident prompted a flurry of diplomatic activity in the region and calls for Iran to show restraint as envoys seek to prevent the war in Gaza sparked by Hamas’s October 7 assault on Israel from spiraling into a wider conflict between the longtime adversaries.
Hamas is designated a terrorist organization by the US and European Union.
