President Biden said on Sunday that he intended to talk to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu imminently, shortly before the Israel-Hamas war intensified in Lebanon.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) launched an airstrike on the Lebanese capital of Beirut on Sunday evening, marking the first time the Israeli military implemented an airstrike on the central part of the city amid the yearlong Israel-Hamas war.

Speaking from Dover Air Force Base earlier that afternoon, Biden confirmed to reporters that he planned to speak with Netanyahu. The conversation took place hours before the airstrike began.

“Yes, I will be talking to him,” the Democrat said. “And I’ll tell you what I say to him when I talk to him.”

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When asked about avoiding an “all-out war” in the Middle East, Biden said the U.S. has “to avoid it.”

“We really have to avoid it,” Biden said. “We have already taken precautions relative to our embassies and personnel who want to leave.”

“And, but, we’re not there yet, but we’re working like hell with the French and many others to avoid [more] war.”

The Associated Press first reported the airstrike on Sunday evening, citing witnesses in central Beirut. The airstrike came the same weekend that the IDF systematically targeted Hezbollah, a Lebanese terrorist group that supports Hamas.

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A man walks on rubble at the site of an Israeli airstrike in Beirut’s southern suburbs, Sunday, Sept. 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)

The IDF had only targeted south Beirut, a Hezbollah stronghold, before Sunday’s strikes. Dozens of people in Lebanon were killed by the IDF over the weekend, including Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah.

A man stands on the rubble of buildings near the site of the assassination of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah in Beirut’s southern suburbs, Sunday, Sept. 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)

The Israeli military also confirmed that Nabil Kaouk, the deputy head of Hezbollah’s Central Council, was eliminated by IDF forces.

Fox News Digital reached out to the White House for further comment.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Hundreds of protesters have taken to the streets of Paris to call for an end to Israeli air strikes in Lebanon, potentially using weaponry supplied by France.

The rallies come as at least 24 people were killed and 29 others injured in strikes on two adjacent buildings in the southern city of Sidon.

“We have just one objective, to show the unity of the Lebanese people,” said Hassan Daher, a spokesperson for the groups organising the protest.

“An image that shows all the Lebanese, from all over Lebanon, from different political currents, supporting Lebanon, the refugees, the victims, supporting and defending our country.”

The Lebanese militant group Hezbollah confirmed Nabil Kaouk, the deputy head of the Central Council, was killed on Saturday, making him the seventh senior Hezbollah leader assassinated in Israeli strikes in a little over a week.

That announcement comes after the group’s leader, Hassan Nasrallah, was killed in a strike on a southern Beirut suburb on Friday evening.

Israel and Hezbollah have exchanged almost daily fire since the war in Gaza started in October, displacing tens of thousands of people on both sides of the border.

Israel has ramped up its aerial assault on Lebanon with more than 700 people killed in the last week alone.

On Saturday Israel moved troops close to its northern border, raising fears of an imminent ground offensive into the country.

France has been a key supporter of Israel, defending its right to self-defence for years.

An arms export report presented to parliament by the Defence Ministry in July 2023 showed that France had issued 767 export licenses to Israel since 2015.

France sells an average of €20 million worth of military equipment to Israel each year.

In April, 11 NGOs in Paris, including Amnesty International, filed a court case to stop France’s arms sales to Israel, arguing that civilians in Gaza were targeted.

The court rejected that request in May.