Guterres:

World cannot afford Lebanon to become another Gaza

Antonio Guterres issued a serious warning as a full-scale war between Lebanon's Hezbollah and the Israeli army approaches.

News ID: 84674

Date: 22 June 2024 - 09:27

TEHRAN (defapress) - United Nations Secretary-General, Antonio Guterres, expressed increasing concern over the escalating war of words and deadly border clashes between Israel’s IOF and Hezbollah fighters.

UN peacekeepers are working to calm the situation and prevent “miscalculation” after both sides heightened their rhetoric and raised the possibility of full-scale conflict, he said on Friday.

“One rash move – one miscalculation – could trigger a catastrophe that goes far beyond the border and, frankly, beyond imagination,” Guterres told reporters. “Let’s be clear: The people of the region and the people of the world cannot afford Lebanon to become another Gaza.”

“UN peacekeepers are on the ground working to de-escalate tensions and help prevent miscalculation,” Guterres said. “The world must say loudly and clearly: immediate de-escalation is not only possible – it is essential. There is no military solution.”