France’s President Emmanuel Macron is facing renewed criticism for his lack of support for President Donald Trump’s war against Iran and demands to include Lebanon in the current ceasefire as historic talks between Israel and Lebanon are set to begin Tuesday.

The historic meeting brokered by President Trump between Lebanon, a former French mandate, and Israel will take place at the ambassador level as hopes for an agreement evolve ­— most noticeably without French involvement. Secretary of State Marco Rubio is expected to host both nations’ ambassadors.

The Jerusalem Post reported that Israel’s government requested that France be excluded from the talks. An Israeli official told the paper that «France’s conduct over the past year – including initiatives aimed at limiting Israel’s ability to fight in Iran, and a complete lack of willingness to take concrete steps to help Lebanon disarm Hezbollah – has led Israel to view France as an unfair mediator.»

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On Monday, Hezbollah chief Naim ​Qassem on Monday ‌called on the Lebanese government to ​cancel the ​Tuesday meeting in Washington, while ⁠describing the talks as pointless. In ​a televised ​speech, Qassem said the ‌armed ⁠group will continue to confront Israeli attacks on ​Lebanon.

Hezbollah violated a ceasefire to enter the war on its patron, Iran’s side, in March when it launched rockets into Israel after the U.S.-Israel joint attack on the Islamic Republic began, still Macron has demanded Israel stop attacking Hezbollah’s terror infrastructure in Lebanon.

Israeli Brig. General (Res.) Yosef Kuperwasser told Fox News Digital that Macron was «working against the best interests of the Lebanese state and government. This is a very problematic direction.» He accused Macron of «taking the side of Hezbollah and normalizing Hezbollah because he is focused on «narrow interests.»

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Hezbollah al-Mahdi scouts parade with big portraits of Iran’s late leader Ayatollah Khomeini, foreground, and Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, background, during an event for Jerusalem day or Al-Quds day, in the southern town of Nabatiyeh, Lebanon, Thursday, Aug. 1, 2013. The last Friday of the Islamic holy month of Ramadan is observed in many Muslim countries as Al-Quds day, as a way of expressing support to the Palestinians and emphasizing the importance of Jerusalem to Muslims. (Hussein Malla/AP Photo)

The former head of research for the Israel Defense Forces’ Military Intelligence Directorate, Kuperwasser, added that the «Americans want us to engage with the Lebanese along with the military [in Lebanon]. Our expectations are very similar. We want to see Lebanon do something about Hezbollah, something real, not just issue statements and pledges. We believe we have helped them by weakening Hezbollah militarily since they decided to launch missiles on March 2. If there is a breakthrough, Lebanon has a lot to gain,» but said it has to «disarm Hezbollah.»

Macron has faced accusations over the years that he has normalized Hezbollah. His government, in contrast to Germany, the U.S., Canada, the Netherlands, Japan, Austria and many other Western and non-Westen countries, refuses to designate Hezbollah’s entire organization a terrorist entity. France has classified Hezbollah’s «military wing» a terrorist organization but declined to ban its «political wing.» Hezbollah considers itself a unified movement without branches.

The French politician François-Xavier Bellamy, who is a member of the European Parliament for the Republicans Party, said last week on French television that «France must stop normalizing Hezbollah.» Macron sparked outrage in 2020 when he reportedly held a private conversation with a top elected Hezbollah official, according to the Paris-based daily Le Figaro.

Smoke rises from Israeli airstrikes in Dahiyeh, a southern suburb of Beirut, Lebanon, Sunday, April 5, 2026. (Emilio Morenatti/AP)

Edy Cohen, an Israeli security expert on Hezbollah, who was born in Lebanon, told Fox News Digital, «France is forced not to come out against Hezbollah in order to legitimize its involvement in Lebanon.»

A French diplomat told the Times of Israel that «what we are hoping for is not a ticket to the meeting, but that Israel stops its offensive on Lebanon.»

When asked if France would pressure Lebanon to recognize Israel as a state, Pascal Confavreux, a spokesman for France’s Foreign Ministry, told «Fox News Sunday» that, «Iran has to stop terrorizing Israel through Hezbollah because Hezbollah chose to bring Lebanon into a war which is not Lebanon’s war… Lebanon has to be included in the ceasefire, something that we are pushing diplomatically,» He continued that we are in favor of direct talks between Lebanon and Israel.

It is not known if France asked for a seat at the talks. Fox News Digital sent multiple press queries to France’s embassies in Washington D.C. and Tel Aviv.

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Hezbollah launches long-range missiles from Lebanon into northern Israel within 48 hours of strikes on Iran, escalating the widening conflict amid Operation Epic Fury. (Hadi Mizban/AP)

On Saturday, Macron again pushed his desire for a ceasefire and wrote on X that he had discussions with Iran’s President Massoud Pezeshkian on Saturday: «I stressed the importance of full respect for the ceasefire, including in Lebanon. France extends its full support to the actions of the Lebanese authorities, who alone are legitimate to exercise the sovereignty of the State and decide the destiny of Lebanon.»

Walid Phares, an expert on Lebanon and the region, told Fox News Digital that while the talks are important, problems exist. «It is at ambassadors’ level, which means it is not destined to reach a top level of decision-making.»

He added, «Strangely, the Lebanese president and prime minister declined to invite the Lebanese foreign minister to the Washington talks, provoking a representation by Israel, also at ambassadorial level, showing that Hezbollah still has a strong influence on the Lebanese government. The militia is being rejected by the population on the ground and fears a meeting in D.C. would ostracize Hezbollah further.»

Iran rebuilds Hezbollah ties as Trump gives 10-15 day deadline. (Fadel Itani/NurPhoto)

Sethrida Geagea, a member of parliament from the Lebanese Forces party, posted on X ahead of the Israel-Lebanon talks an open letter to Nabih Berri, the powerful speaker of the Lebanese Parliament and leader of the Shiite Amal Movement. She issued indirect criticism of Hezbollah and its terrorist army within the state. Geagea appealed to Berri to unify the Lebanese to be «protected by a single army.»

Without naming Hezbollah, her letter stated that young Shiites have been plunged into war that has nothing to do with them and the conflict is really about an Iranian decision to retaliate for the joint U.S.-Israel war that assassinated the Islamic Republic’s Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei, on February 28.

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The State Department did not immediately respond to a Fox News Digital press query.

Reuters contributed to this report.

A recent webinar hosted by some of the top teachers’ unions in the United States that pushed a curriculum focused on the upcoming May Day protests is prompting education experts and watchdogs to sound the alarm about alleged political indoctrination inside classrooms.

The Chicago Teachers’ Union and the National Education Association collaborated with the Zinn Education Project on an April 2nd seminar referred to as a «curriculum build» to «bring «social justice into the classroom» ahead of May Day, the traditional May 1st holiday that has long been embraced by communist and socialist movements as a day of mass political action.

«There’s probably gonna be a lot worse things that Trump does, and so May Day is a dress rehearsal for maybe there’s a random day in, you know, June that we all are, like, no work, no school, no shopping, because of something Pete just did, right?» Dave Stieber, a history teacher in Chicago Public Schools, said during the presentation. 

«So this is a continuation and a buildup of that.»

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The webinar also included guidance on how educators could bring activism into the classroom, including with very young students, with speakers who encouraged lessons centered on activism for children as young as three, presenting such engagement as a way to build early awareness and participation. 

«I did want to say I really encourage teachers of young children not to feel like this is stuff that’s way beyond their students, not to be afraid of raising up social justice issues, including workers’ rights, anti-racism, pro LGBT, LGBTQIA plus issues, immigration and immigrants rights,» Kirstin Roberts, a pre-school teacher in Chicago Public Schools, says in the seminar. 

The North American Values Institute (NAVI), who first posted the seminar online, argues that the unions are attempting to «groom» students to push social justice platforms in protests across the United States including on May Day.

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«The webinar demonstrates clearly that our teacher unions view students as foot soldiers in their political and ideological battles and the classroom as an appropriate venue to wage their war,» Mika Hackner, director of research at NAVI, told Fox News Digital. 

During the seminar, one of the lessons on «May Day curriculum building» focuses on making the upcoming protest look less «scary» to children. 

«In this lesson, we really want to introduce the idea that there’s going to be marches and protests on Mayday,» Roberts says.

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Becky Pringle, president of the National Education Association, and Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers, are pictured together.  (Leigh Vogel/Getty Images for March For Our Lives)

«Sometimes those are made to look really scary on the news and so we, or in social media, and so we want to share images with our children of protests that lifts up the beauty and the humanity of the people involved.»

The Chicago Teachers’ Union, which has been pushing for schools to be closed on May Day, has long faced criticism for pushing far-left political agenda items in the classroom and encouraging teachers to take to the streets in opposition to the Trump administration. 

Earlier this year, Fox News Digital reported that CTU appears poised to spend a substantial amount of money on «political activities» to the tune of $3.1 million dollars.

In January, CTU members filmed themselves protesting federal immigration enforcement and anti-DEI measures at a local Target, sparking criticism both online and from experts.

«It’s very clear that teachers unions seek to destroy our country by turning our students against it,» Teacher Freedom Alliance CEO Ryan Walters told Fox News Digital.

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 «The Chicago Teachers Union is one of the worst. The fact that they are targeting students as young as 3 years old with this anti-American propaganda should be criminal. The teachers unions will continue to use students as Marxist pawns until we have driven them out of our schools.» 

The NEA has found itself facing criticism over political activism in recent months as well which Fox News Digital has extensively reported on, including federal labor filings in January that showed the nation’s largest teacher’s union funneling millions to far-left activist groups, ballot initiatives and social justice organizations.

«They don’t care about the students, they care about pushing these leftist, liberal Democrat people [politicians] so that they can get more money and just fund all these stupid initiatives,» an NEA whistleblower told Fox News Digital in January.

Fox News Digital reached out to the NEA, CTU, Chicago Public Schools, and Zinn Project for comment.

Las agencias de inteligencia de Estados Unidos han obtenido información de que, en las últimas semanas, China podría haber enviado un cargamento de misiles portátiles a Irán para su conflicto con Estados Unidos e Israel, según funcionarios estadounidenses.

Los funcionarios dijeron que la información de inteligencia no es concluyente respecto al envío del cargamento, y que no hay pruebas de que los misiles chinos ya se hayan utilizado contra las fuerzas estadounidenses o israelíes durante el conflicto.

Pero incluso un debate en Pekín sobre el envío de misiles a Irán indica hasta qué punto China se considera implicada en el conflicto. Los servicios de inteligencia han evaluado que China está adoptando en secreto una postura activa en la guerra, al permitir que algunas empresas envíen a Irán productos químicos, combustible y componentes que pueden utilizarse en la producción militar para la guerra.

Los misiles disparados desde el hombro, conocidos como MANPADS, son capaces de derribar aviones que vuelen a poca altura.

Durante mucho tiempo, China se ha mostrado reacia a enviar material militar acabado a Irán, pero algunos funcionarios del gobierno quieren que Pekín permita que sus empresas suministren directamente a las fuerzas de seguridad iraníes durante el conflicto con Estados Unidos.

Si el gobierno chino ha permitido el envío de misiles, sería una escalada significativa y un indicio de que al menos algunos dirigentes chinos trabajan activamente para provocar una derrota militar estadounidense en una guerra que ha asolado Medio Oriente.

La información sobre el posible apoyo chino a Irán llega cuando los servicios de inteligencia estadounidenses han visto pruebas de que Rusia ha proporcionado al ejército iraní información satelital específica para ayudar al Cuerpo de la Guardia Revolucionaria Islámica de Irán a atacar barcos estadounidenses, junto con instalaciones militares y diplomáticas en todo Medio Oriente.

En conjunto, el apoyo militar a Irán muestra cómo los poderosos adversarios de Estados Unidos han visto una oportunidad de aumentar los costos para Estados Unidos por el inicio de la guerra y, de manera potencial, entorpecer al ejército estadounidense en el conflicto.

El apoyo chino a Irán llega en un momento delicado de las relaciones entre Estados Unidos y China. El presidente Donald Trump tiene previsto viajar el mes que viene a China para reunirse con el presidente chino Xi Jinping, en una cumbre que se espera aborde una serie de cuestiones comerciales, tecnológicas y militares. La cumbre estaba prevista inicialmente para marzo, pero se retrasó debido a la guerra en Irán.

Las agencias de inteligencia estadounidenses han seguido de cerca el apoyo que Rusia y China han prestado a Irán durante la guerra. Los funcionarios estadounidenses han considerado que Rusia está más dispuesta a ayudar, al enviar ayuda alimentaria, suministros militares no letales e imágenes por satélite a Teherán. Sin embargo, Moscú parece haber descartado el suministro de material militar ofensivo o defensivo, por temor a provocar a Estados Unidos.

En general, los funcionarios chinos han querido proteger, al menos públicamente, su imagen de parte neutral. Antiguos funcionarios afirman que Irán depende de China para obtener componentes para sus misiles y drones, pero Pekín puede argumentar que dichos componentes, por cruciales que sean, pueden utilizarse para fabricar mucho más que armamento. China también proporcionó información de inteligencia y suministró piezas de doble uso a Irán, del mismo modo que lo hizo con Rusia durante su guerra con Ucrania.

Un reportaje de la CNN del sábado decía que China se preparaba para enviar un cargamento de misiles de hombro a Irán en las próximas semanas.

Un portavoz de la embajada de China en Estados Unidos negó rotundamente que su gobierno hubiera enviado misiles a Irán durante la guerra.

“China nunca ha proporcionado armas a ninguna de las partes en conflicto; la información en cuestión es falsa”, dijo Liu Pengyu, el portavoz. “Como importante país responsable, China cumple sistemáticamente sus obligaciones internacionales. Instamos al lado estadounidense a que se abstenga de hacer acusaciones infundadas, establecer conexiones de forma maliciosa y de recurrir al sensacionalismo; esperamos que las partes pertinentes hagan más para ayudar a rebajar las tensiones”.

China depende en gran medida del petróleo que pasa por el estrecho de Ormuz, y está ansiosa por no hacer nada que prolongue la guerra, según funcionarios estadounidenses. Al mismo tiempo, al menos algunos funcionarios chinos están interesados en apoyar a Teherán en una guerra que se considera que debilita la posición y la fuerza de Estados Unidos.

China es el mayor socio comercial de Irán y el mayor comprador de petróleo iraní. Según un informe de la Comisión de Revisión Económica y de Seguridad entre Estados Unidos y China, grupo fundado por el Congreso para examinar los vínculos bilaterales de Estados Unidos con China, “las compras chinas representan aproximadamente el 90 por ciento del petróleo exportado por Irán, lo que proporciona decenas de miles de millones de dólares en ingresos anuales que sostienen el presupuesto gubernamental y las actividades militares de Irán”.

Sin embargo, los expertos sobre China han señalado que la retórica pública de China durante la guerra de Irán ha sido neutral en su mayoría, posiblemente debido a los profundos lazos económicos que China mantiene con las naciones árabes del golfo Pérsico las cuales han sido atacadas por Irán durante el conflicto.

“En todo caso, retóricamente se están alineando más con sus socios del Golfo que con Irán”, dijo Henrietta Levin, del Centro de Estudios Estratégicos e Internacionales de Washington. “La relación económica, tecnológica y energética con el Golfo es, en muchos sentidos, estratégicamente más importante para China que cualquier relación que mantenga con Irán”.

Anton Troianovski colaboró con reportería desde Washington.

Mark Mazzetti es un periodista de investigación con sede en Washington D. C., especializado en seguridad nacional, inteligencia y asuntos exteriores. Ha escrito un libro sobre la CIA.

Eric Schmitt es corresponsal de seguridad nacional para el Times. Ha informado sobre asuntos militares estadounidenses y antiterrorismo durante más de tres décadas.

Julian E. Barnes cubre las noticias relacionadas con las agencias de inteligencia estadounidenses y los asuntos de seguridad internacional para el Times. Lleva más de dos décadas reportando sobre temas de seguridad.