EU top diplomat urges Lebanon and Israel to ease tensions along their border

Associated Press

BEIRUT (AP) — The European Union’s top diplomat is urging Lebanon and Israel to work on deescalating tensions along their border. EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said Thursday that since his last trip to the region in January “the drums of war have not stopped pounding.” His comments came as members of the militant Hezbollah group and Israel’s military carried out cross border attacks along the tense frontier on Thursday. More than 500 people have been killed in Lebanon by Israeli strikes since Oct. 8, most of them fighters with Hezbollah and other armed groups but also more than 100 civilians. In northern Israel, 23 soldiers and 26 civilians have been killed by strikes from Lebanon.