UN's Guterres warns of all-out war if 'Israel' invades Lebanon
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The UN's secretary general calls on both sides to commit to Security Council Resolution 1701, and adds that efforts by UN peacekeepers are being made across the Blue Line to defuse tensions.
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United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres speaks to journalists in Doha, Qatar, Monday, February 19, 2024. (AP)
Following threats by "Israel" to invade Lebanon, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres issued a warning against a larger conflict in the Middle East.
In remarks to reporters in New York, the UN chief mentioned the daily exchanges of fire and verbal spats between the Lebanese Resistance and the Israeli occupation as evidence that there is a genuine chance for the crisis in the region to worsen.
He expressed feeling “compelled” to voice his concerns about the situation between “Israel” and the Lebanese Resistance.
“Escalation in continued exchanges of fire. And escalation in bellicose rhetoric from both sides as if an all-out war was imminent. The risk of the conflict in the Middle East to widen is real – and must be avoided. One rash move – one miscalculation – could trigger a catastrophe that goes far beyond the border, and frankly, beyond imagination,” he said.
He added that the region and the world cannot “afford Lebanon to become another Gaza”.
"Israel" is already looking to cut ties with Guterres after being blacklisted as an entity that violates children’s rights in "conflict zones".
Rising tides
Guterres also called on both sides to “urgently recommit to the full implementation of Security Council Resolution 1701 and immediately return to a cessation of hostilities,” underlining the need for the protection of children, medical workers, and journalists, and said, “displaced communities must be able to return to their homes.”
“Immediate de-escalation is not only possible, it is essential. There is no military solution." According to Guterres, efforts are being made by UN peacekeepers to defuse tensions and “promote peace, security and stability in line with Security Council Resolution 1701.”
Back in January, Guterres warned against another genocide in Lebanon, following Israeli attacks and increased tension at the Palestinian-Lebanese border to the South of Lebanon.
This comes after Axios reported last week that Washington has "grown extremely concerned" that escalation on the Northern Front between Hezbollah and the Israeli occupation in recent days will lead to an "all-out war".
President Joe Biden's administration is "scrambling" to prevent a larger-scale war between the Resistance in Lebanon and "Israel", Axios added.
The news outlet explained that the Biden administration has cautioned the Israeli government against the notion of "a limited war" in Lebanon, saying that such an event would lead to other actors participating in the conflict, including Iran.
Axios affirmed that the US is concerned about Israeli officials hurtling the occupation into a war with the Islamic Resistance in Lebanon - Hezbollah, "or getting dragged into one."
