Israel and Hizbollah urged to avoid 'catastrophe'

By AFP - Sep 23,2024 - Last updated at Sep 23,2024

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres speaks during ‘Summit of the Future’ on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly at the United Nations Headquarters in New York, on Sunday (AFP photo)

PARIS — World powers on Sunday implored Israel and Lebanon's Iran-backed Hizbollah movement to refrain from escalating their conflict as the Gaza war threatened to spill over across the Middle East.

Hizbollah and Israeli forces have traded regular cross-border fire since Hamas' sudden October 7 surprise attack.

But fears of an all-out regional war soared this week as both sides intensified the fighting, with Israeli strikes killing dozens in Lebanon, including top Hizbollah commanders.

United Nations

UN chief Antonio Guterres told broadcaster CNN that he feared "the possibility of transforming Lebanon [into] another Gaza".

The UN special coordinator for Lebanon, Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert, warned on X that the Middle East was close to "an imminent catastrophe" and that no side would be safer through military means.

Guterres also said neither Israel nor Hamas were interested in achieving a ceasefire to end their devastating war in Gaza that has raged for almost a year.

"That is a tragedy, because this is a war that must stop," Guterres said.

United States

White House National Security spokesman John Kirby said escalating the conflict was not in key US ally Israel's "best interest".

The United States was saying this "directly to our Israeli counterparts" and believes "there can be time and space for a diplomatic solution here and that's what we're working on", he told ABC.

European Union

The 27-nation bloc is "extremely concerned" about the escalating violence and is calling for an "urgent" ceasefire, its foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said.

A full-blown war "must be averted, including by renewed intense diplomatic mediation efforts", he added.

Britain

Foreign Secretary David Lammy urged Israel and Hizbollah to reach an "immediate ceasefire" following a "worrying escalation".

Addressing his Labour Party’s annual conference, Lammy said a ceasefire would facilitate “a political settlement, so that Israelis and Lebanese civilians can return to their homes and live in peace and security”.

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