Mr. Guterres spoke that morning with the country’s acting Foreign Minister, Ali Bagheri, writes UN News. “During the conversation, the Secretary-General expressed his deep concern regarding the ongoing situation in the region,” said UN Spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric during his daily briefing in New York. “He reiterated his public message urging all parties to work towards de-escalation.”
On Wednesday the Secretary-General warned that an Israeli strike in Beirut, Lebanon, the previous day that killed a senior Hezbollah commander, as well as the killing of a top Hamas leader in an attack in Iran’s capital, Tehran, “represent a dangerous escalation” in the Middle East.
These developments were happening at time when “all efforts should instead be leading to a ceasefire in Gaza, the release of all Israeli hostages, a massive increase of humanitarian aid for Palestinians in Gaza and a return to calm in Lebanon and across the Blue Line.”
On the cover photo, the Secretary-General Antonio Guterres meets with former President of Islamic Republic of Iran Seyyed Ebrahim Raisi at UN Headquarters in New York on September 18, 2023 ©lev radin/Shutterstock.com
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