But he stressed that this “doesn’t mean the war is about to end” in Gaza and said Israel would continue to try to remove Hamas from power. He insisted that Israel was capable of fighting on several fronts.
This week, Germany and the Netherlands joined several other countries in urging their citizens based in Lebanon to leave while they still could.
“Tensions in the border areas with Israel are heightened and could escalate further at any time,” the German foreign office said, shortly after Annalena Baerbock, the foreign minister, visited Israel and Beirut.
The Dutch foreign ministry also warned that Lebanon was “unsafe” and “the situation remains very unpredictable.”
The UK’s foreign office advice, last updated on April 26, advises against all travel to Lebanon and encourages citizens living there to leave while commercial options remain available.