“The proposal that was made is a solid proposal,” Macron said at a news conference in Montreal with Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau.

He noted that the plan supported by the US and the EU had been prepared with Netanyahu himself.

Top Israeli officials earlier that day rejected the proposal for a ceasefire with Hezbollah. Washington also insisted the truce plan had been “co-ordinated” with Israel.

Netanyahu said his government had not even responded to the proposal and instead ordered the military to “continue fighting with full force” against Hezbollah.

“It would be a mistake for the (Israeli) prime minister to refuse it because he would have to take responsibility for a regional escalation far beyond what anyone could control, and obviously new civilian casualties in Lebanon,” Macron said.

“We absolutely have to reach a ceasefire immediately,” added Trudeau, pointing to “devastating” images from Lebanon.

The US, the EU and other allies, as well as several Arab states, have launched a joint call for a 21-day halt to fighting in Lebanon, after Israeli airstrikes killed hundreds of people and displaced more than 100,000 in Lebanon this week.

The call for a three-week ceasefire came hours after Israeli army chief Lt Gen Herzi Halevi on Wednesday urged soldiers to prepare for a possible ground offensive against Hezbollah.

The French president said that Israel’s initial reactions to the proposal were not “definitive” and raised the possibility of convening the UN Security Council on the subject to “increase the pressure.”