UN Secretary-General António Guterres has condemned “the serious escalation represented by the large-scale attack launched against Israel by the Islamic Republic of Iran”.
Iran launched more than 200 drones and missiles on Saturday evening in retaliation for an Israeli raid on an annex of the Iranian consulate in Damascus on April 1. According to an Israeli army spokesman, most of the air threats were intercepted and neutralized well before reaching their targets.
Faced with this situation, the UN chief called “for an immediate cessation of these hostilities”, stressing that he is “deeply alarmed by the very real danger of a devastating region-wide escalation”, and urged all parties to show “the utmost restraint to avoid any action that could lead to major military confrontations on several fronts in the Middle East”.
“I have repeatedly stressed that neither the region nor the world can afford another war,” concluded the Secretary-General in his statement to the press.
For his part, the President of the UN General Assembly, Dennis Francis, shared his concern “at developments in the Middle East, involving Iran’s launch of drones and missiles against Israel”.
“The Iranians explained their action in the context of Article 51 of the UN Charter, following the recent Israeli attack on the Iranian embassy in Damascus”, he noted, believing that “the Iranian response aggravates the already tense and delicate peace and security situation in the Middle East”.
He thus called on all parties “to exercise the utmost restraint to avoid a further escalation of tensions in the region”, asserting that this is “a moment that calls for wise and prudent judgment, during which risks are carefully considered”.
“A vicious circle of attacks and counter-attacks will lead nowhere, but inevitably to more death, suffering and pain. Dialogue and diplomacy are the only way to resolve disputes by peaceful means”, he added.
Meanwhile, an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council was announced for Sunday afternoon at Israel’s request. “We plan to hold the meeting tomorrow at 4 p.m.” (20:00 GMT), a spokesman for the Maltese diplomatic mission, which holds the Council presidency in April, told reporters on Saturday.
