Hezbollah chief says backs French initiative but urges review

Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah on Tuesday said he backed a French initiative to rapidly form a government to lift Lebanon out of crisis, but urged a change in tone.

"We still welcome the French initiative... but the intimidation of last month should not continue," he said in a televised speech, two days after French President Emmanuel Macron compared lack of progress on the government's formation to "collective betrayal".

"We do not accept your accusation of our betrayal... We reject and condemn this condescending behaviour," Nasrallah said.