French soldier killed in Lebanon: Paris says it has 'assurances' Beirut will do everything to arrest perpetrators; body repatriated

BEIRUT — France has received “assurances” from the Lebanese government that it will do everything possible to arrest those responsible for the ambush against U.N. peacekeepers that killed a French soldier on Saturday in southern Lebanon, the French foreign minister said on Sunday.

“We received assurances yesterday [Saturday] that the Lebanese authorities would give absolute priority to finding and arresting those responsible for this murder,” Jean-Noël Barrot said on Radio J.

Chief Sergeant Florian Montorio was killed on Saturday in an ambush attributed by France, the United Nations, and Israel to Hezbollah. His body was due to be repatriated on Sunday, government spokesperson Maud Bregeon announced on BFMTV.

Hezbollah denies any involvement in the ambush targeting French U.N. peacekeepers in Lebanon (UNIFIL), in which three other French soldiers were also wounded.

“All indications suggest that Hezbollah is responsible,” Barrot insisted, praising the commitment of the Lebanese president and prime minister to bringing those responsible to justice.

Adraee points the finger at Hezbollah

Although Hezbollah has denied any involvement in the attack in which a French peacekeeper was killed in Ghandourieh, in the Bint Jbeil district, the Israeli army said it conducted an “investigation” that “confirmed” Hezbollah’s involvement.

“It can be confirmed that yesterday, during a UNIFIL operation to remove unexploded ordnance in the village of Ghandourieh, a Hezbollah-affiliated cell opened fire,” Arabic-language army spokesperson Avichay Adraee said in a statement.

For its part, UNIFIL said the peacekeepers were targeted “by non-state actors,” presumed to be affiliated with Hezbollah.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres condemned the attack and called on all parties in Lebanon to respect the cease-fire that took effect Friday, noting that attacks against peacekeepers could constitute a "war crime." Guterres also requested that "all attacks [...] be subject to prompt investigations" and that their perpetrators "be prosecuted and held accountable." This is the third incident in recent weeks resulting in the deaths of peacekeepers in Lebanon, following the death of three Indonesian soldiers during the 46-day war between Hezbollah and Israel.

'Destroying Lebanon will strengthen Hezbollah'

Minister Jean-Noël Barrot also criticized Israel’s conduct in an interview, saying it has carried out military operations against Hezbollah in Lebanon, causing widespread destruction and displacement until a cease-fire announced Thursday by U.S. President Donald Trump.

"It is not by destroying Lebanon or the Lebanese state that Hezbollah will be destroyed; on the contrary, it will be strengthened," the minister said.

The Lebanese government is under international pressure to disarm Hezbollah, in a delicate and uncertain process that began before the Iran war. It “must be resumed since … the only political solution to ensure peace and stability in Lebanon is to disarm Hezbollah …, then obviously for Israel to withdraw from southern Lebanon.”

The ambush in Lebanon is the second deadly attack against French soldiers attributed to groups linked to Tehran since the beginning of Israeli and American strikes on Iran on Feb. 28, which have engulfed the region in wider conflict.

On March 12, Chief Warrant Officer Arnaud Frion was killed in Iraq in an attack attributed to a pro-Iranian group. Asked about Iran’s responsibility, Barrot described it as “overwhelming,” denouncing “the Islamic regime’s support for militias that destabilize the region and that, in the context of this war launched by the United States and Israel against Iran, have targeted neighboring countries and French soldiers.”