The United Nations (UN) Secretary General, Antonio Guterres, has called for maximum restraint in the Middle East. This after Iran launched hundreds of more than 200 drones and missiles at Israel on Saturday.
Tehran said it was in retaliation to a strike earlier this month by Israel at its consulate in Damascus, Syria, that killed its officials and Syrian residents. Iran’s attack prompted the UN Security Council to hold an emergency meeting on Sunday. “The Middle East is on the brink. The people of the region are confronting a real danger of a
devastating full-scale conflict. Now is the time to defuse and de-escalate. Now is the time for maximum restraint. I strongly condemn the serious escalation represented by the large-scale attack launched on Israel by the Islamic Republic of Iran this evening. And I call for an immediate cessation of these hostilities,” said
Guterres who was addressing the council meeting.
Guterres also warned that the escalation of hostilities, could lead to major military confrontations on multiple fronts in the Middle East, adding that civilians are already bearing the brunt and paying the highest price.
Tehran UN ambassador, Amir Saeid Iravani, is however adamant that it had to respond to Israel’s consulate attack, had a right to defend itself.
“Iran’s operation was entirely in the exercise of Iran’s inherent right to self-defence. This concluded action was necessary and proportionate. It was precise and only targeted military objectives and carried out carefully to minimize the potential for escalation and prevent civilian harm,” said Iravani.
He also warned that Iran will use its inherent right to respond proportionally, “if the US initiates military operations against Iran, its citizens, or its security and interests.” Meanwhile, Israel’s ambassador to the UN, Gilad Erdan, warned that Tel Aviv would not hesitate to also retaliate following this weekend attacks. “The mask is off. Iran, the number-one global sponsor of terror, has exposed its true face as the destabilizer of the region and the world.
And now, right now, is when the world must stop ignoring Iran’s crimes and take actions. The snooze button is no longer an option. The only option is to condemn Iran and utilize every means necessary to make them pay a heavy price for their horrible crimes,” Erdan told the council meeting.
President Cyril Ramaphosa has also joined other world leaders and called for maximum restraint. “We should not be having a regional conflict when we know what the origins of this conflict are, and we therefore call on all parties to desist from escalating this conflict. It is a very dangerous conflict that could escalate way beyond even the borders of the Middle East,” explained Ramaphosa, who was speaking in Orange Farm, south of Johannesburg, during the African National Congress campaign trail.
