UN Secretary-General Stresses Urgent Need to End War on Gaza and Lebanon

It is high time for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and a cessation of hostilities in Lebanon, and to stop the cycle of escalation that is leading the people of the Middle East straight over the cliff, the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres stressed. In remarks to the Security Council's meeting on the situation in the Middle East today, Guterres said it is high time for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, with the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages, the effective delivery of humanitarian aid to Palestinians in Gaza, and irreversible progress to a two-state solution. It is high time for a cessation of hostilities in Lebanon, real action towards full implementation of Security Council resolutions 1559 and 1701, paving the way for diplomatic efforts for sustainable peace, he added. Since last October, more than 1,700 people have been killed in Lebanon, including over 100 children and 194 women. Over 346,000 people are confirmed to have been displaced from their homes. Government estimates put t his number as high as one million, he pointed out. The UN chief warned that the situation in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, continues to deteriorate with Israeli military operations, construction of settlements, evictions, land grabs, and intensification of settler attacks - progressively undermining any possibility of a two-state solution. "We must never lose sight of the tremendous toll that this growing conflict is taking on civilians," he concluded. Source: Oman News Agency