Speaking to reporters outside the UN Security Council in New York on Thursday, Guterres described a rapidly deteriorating situation as Israeli and United States forces continue airstrikes against Iran, while Tehran launches attacks on neighbouring Gulf States and threatens shipping it considers hostile in the Strait of Hormuz.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\u201cEvery day this war continues, human suffering grows. The scale of devastation grows. Indiscriminate attacks grow,\u201d the Secretary\u2011General said. He warned that attacks on civilians and civilian infrastructure are increasing, while economic risks are spreading far beyond the region.<\/p>\n
Guterres stressed that the crisis is no longer confined to the Middle East, pointing to growing threats to freedom of navigation in critical maritime routes. He said disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz are already harming the world\u2019s most vulnerable populations.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen the Strait of Hormuz is strangled, the world\u2019s poorest and most vulnerable cannot breathe,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The knock\u2011on effects, he noted, are being felt across continents, as rising food and energy prices strain households in countries such as the Philippines, Sri Lanka and Mozambique.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
In an effort to halt the escalation, Guterres announced that he is dispatching his Personal Envoy, Jean Arnault, to the region to support ongoing diplomatic initiatives. He urged all parties to give peace efforts the necessary space to succeed.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\u201cThe spiral of death and destruction must stop,\u201d he said, underscoring that any resolution must be grounded in international law and the UN Charter.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The Secretary\u2011General called for respect for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all states, protection of civilians and the safeguarding of nuclear facilities in Iran and elsewhere, warning that further escalation could have irreversible consequences.<\/p>\n
Addressing the main protagonists directly, Guterres said: \u201cTo the United States and Israel, it is high time to stop the war that is inflicting immense human suffering and already triggering devastating economic consequences.\u201d<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
He added that Iran must immediately end attacks against its neighbours. Recalling recent Security Council condemnations of attacks on Gulf States and declarations on freedom of navigation, Guterres said global leaders retain the power to prevent further catastrophe.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\u201cConflicts do not end on their own,\u201d he concluded. \u201cThey end when leaders choose dialogue over destruction. That choice still exists. And it must be made now.\u201d<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
–UN\/ChannelAfrica–<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":30649,"template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"news-type":[26],"class_list":["post-30648","news","type-news","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","news-type-general_news","entry"],"acf":{"short_description":"The escalating conflict in the Middle East has entered its second month, prompting a stark warning from United Nations (UN) Secretary\u2011General Ant\u00f3nio Guterres that the world is \u201con the edge of a wider war\u201d with potentially catastrophic global consequences.","published_date":"","news_description":"The escalating conflict in the Middle East has entered its second month, prompting a stark warning from United Nations (UN) Secretary\u2011General Ant\u00f3nio Guterres that the world is \u201con the edge of a wider war\u201d with potentially catastrophic global consequences.","form_embed":"","author":"","image_caption":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/30648","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/news"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/30648\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":30650,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/30648\/revisions\/30650"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/30649"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=30648"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"news-type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news-type?post=30648"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}