French President Emmanuel Macron announced in a statement the reinforcement of French forces in the broader Eastern Mediterranean region.

Among other things, he said that, in addition to the forces already present, more aircraft will arrive along with the frigate Languedoc, which this afternoon reached the waters off Cyprus.

He also confirmed the deployment of the aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle to the Mediterranean Sea along with its battle group.

BFMTV had reported that the aircraft carrier would arrive in the Mediterranean on Sunday.

Regarding France’s involvement, he said that his country shot down Iranian drones “in self-defense, from the very first hours of the conflict, to protect the airspace of our allies.”

“Hezbollah made a serious mistake by attacking Israel and putting the Lebanese at risk,” he further stressed, while also noting that an Israeli ground operation in Lebanon would be “a dangerous escalation and a strategic mistake.”