United Nations (UN) Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said on June 21 that he was deeply concerned by the escalating tensions between Israel and Lebanon's Hezbollah and that UN peacekeepers were working to calm the situation and prevent miscalculation.
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| United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres. (Source: Reuters) |
Mr Guterres warned the world was on the brink of a catastrophe, pointing to the risks of a potentially devastating conflict between Israel and Hezbollah.
“A hasty move, a miscalculation could cause a disaster far beyond our borders and, frankly, beyond imagination… the world cannot allow Lebanon to become another Gaza,” the UN Secretary-General told reporters.
Mr. Guterres called on both sides to “urgently recommit” to peace, ruling out military solutions to the conflict. At the same time, Mr. Guterres added that UN peacekeepers on the ground are “working to de-escalate tensions and help prevent miscalculation in an extremely challenging environment.”
Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah warned on June 19 that his group was prepared for a full-scale conflict with Israel and could invade the country's northern territories in the event of further escalation. The statement came after one of Hezbollah's top commanders, Hajj Sami Taleb Abdullah, was killed in an Israeli attack in southern Lebanon last week.
Earlier on February 17, Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz warned that the country was “very close” to a decision to “change the rules of the game” against Shia militias in southern Lebanon. Clashes on the Israel-Lebanon border have forced more than 53,000 Israelis and nearly 100,000 Lebanese to flee their homes in the past nine months.
Hezbollah has fired rockets into Israel in solidarity with its Palestinian ally Hamas since the Gaza conflict erupted in October, forcing tens of thousands of people to flee their homes in Israel, where political pressure is growing for tougher action.
Tens of thousands of Lebanese have also been forced to flee their homes following Israeli attacks in southern Lebanon.
On its page X, the Iranian Mission to the UN said on June 21 that Hezbollah is capable of defending itself and protecting Lebanon from Israel, and warned that “perhaps the time has come to destroy this illegitimate regime.”
The United Nations peacekeeping force UNIFIL, as well as unarmed technical observers known as UNTSO, have long been stationed in southern Lebanon to monitor hostilities along the demarcation line between Lebanon and Israel, known as the Blue Line.
“UN peacekeepers are on the ground to de-escalate tensions and help prevent miscalculations,” Mr. Guterres said.
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