UN Secretary-General Warns of Rising Tensions in the Middle East

JAKARTA - UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Wednesday warned that rising tensions risked leading to a "full-fledged return to conflict" across the Middle East, urging the Security Council to support an end to Israel's occupation and a two-state solution as the only path to lasting peace.

"The Middle East is dragged deeper into the crisis, and the consequences extend far beyond the region," Guterres said in a high-level open debate of the Security Council on advancing political solutions in the Middle East, Anadolu (10/6) reported.

"This week has brought wider attacks and further deterioration of the situation. I am very concerned that it could trigger a full-fledged return to conflict," he explained.

"The Israeli-Palestinian conflict has been going on for decades without a solution. It is time to seriously think about the only credible path: an end to the occupation and a two-state solution," Guterres said.

"Delay and rejection will only perpetuate injustice, fuel extremism in the region and beyond," he said.

In the Gaza Strip, Guterres said the situation was "rapidly deteriorating," warning that Israel had expressed its intention to seize 70 percent of the territory.

He also urged the full implementation of the plan facilitated by the US, Qatar, Egypt, and Turkey, stressing that "the provision of humanitarian assistance should not be used as a bargaining tool."

Meanwhile, regarding the occupied West Bank, Secretary-General Guterres quoted "alarming reports" of Israeli occupation violence averaging six attacks per day, warning that any annexation "like the occupation for decades, will have no legal validity."

He said the ceasefire in the Persian Gulf "was more like a small fire," warning that navigation restrictions near the Strait of Hormuz posed global difficulties.

Guterres also highlighted the risks to Syria's fragile peace, noting that consolidation "requires respect for its sovereignty and territorial integrity."

"I urge this Council to provide full support to the two-state solution, the key to a just and lasting peace in the region," he said.