U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres warned the international community against sinking further into conflict on Sunday, speaking at a Security Council meeting on Iran’s weekend attack on Israel.
“Neither the region nor the world can afford more wars,” Guterres said.
“The Middle East is on the edge,” he told the Security Council.
“The people of the region are in real danger of a devastating all-out conflict. Now is the time for de-escalation and de-escalation,” he added, calling for “maximum restraint.”
Follow the latest developments on the Middle East crisis
Iran launched its first direct attack on its long-time enemy Israel on Saturday night, launching more than 300 missiles and drones.
Nearly all are intercepted by Israel and other countries including the United States, Jordan and the United Kingdom.
According to the Israeli military, a total of 12 people were injured.
Iran said the attack was in response to a deadly airstrike on Tehran’s consulate building in the Syrian capital Damascus on April 1, which was widely blamed on Israel.
That attack killed seven Iranian Revolutionary Guardsmen, including two top generals, and prompted threats of retaliation from Iran.
The unprecedented exchange marked a major escalation between the two countries and raised new concerns about the wider conflict, including the possibility of an Israeli counterattack.
“Take a step back from the cliff”
The United States said on Sunday it would not join any Israeli counterattack against Iran, with President Joe Biden warning Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to “carefully consider” any escalation.
The escalating tensions come against the backdrop of Israel’s six-month war with Hamas in Gaza, which began after the Palestinian militant group launched an unprecedented attack on Israel on October 7, according to an AFP tally. , an attack that killed 1,170 people, mostly civilians. According to Israeli data.
Israel’s retaliatory offensive has killed at least 33,729 people in Gaza, mostly women and children, according to the Hamas-controlled Gaza Health Ministry.
Iranian-backed groups in Iraq, Lebanon, Syria and Yemen have launched a series of attacks on Israeli and Western targets since the conflict began.
On Sunday, the Security Council convened a meeting on the simmering crisis at Israel’s request, with Israeli Ambassador Gilad Erdan urging the council to “take action (and) condemn Iran’s terrorist acts.”
He said the agency must “impose all possible sanctions on Iran before it is too late.”
Meanwhile, Iran’s special envoy to the United Nations, Amir Saeed Irawani, insisted that the Islamic Republic was exercising its “inherent right to self-defense.”
“The Security Council…has failed in its duty to maintain international peace and security,” Irawani said.
Tehran therefore had “no choice” but to respond, he said, adding that his country “does not seek escalation or war” but would respond to any “threat or aggression.”
In his speech, Guterres once again condemned Iran’s attack on Israel and Israel’s attack on the Iranian consulate in Damascus.
Guterres said: “It is time to take a step back from the cliff. It is crucial to avoid any actions that could lead to a major military confrontation on multiple fronts in the Middle East.”
He also reiterated his call for an “immediate humanitarian ceasefire” in Gaza, which experts warn is on the verge of famine.
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