The Middle East is on the “precipice” of a broader war that can be averted with a two-state solution allowing Israel and Palestine to exist side-by-side with Jerusalem as a shared capital, United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres told the Security Council on Thursday.
Guterres’ comments came as Tehran warned it has the ability to strike Israeli nuclear sites if Israel targets Iran’s nuclear facilities.
Guterres said a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian crisis is the basis of U.N. resolutions, international law and previous agreements. The current Israeli government, however, has shown little interest in relinquishing control of the occupied territories.
“One miscalculation, one miscommunication, one mistake, could lead to the unthinkable – a full-scale regional conflict that would be devastating for all involved and for the rest of the world,” he said.
Guterres called on Israel as the “occupying power” to protect the Palestinian population in the West Bank against violence and intimidation and allow safe passage for humanitarian aid into Gaza.
“Let me be clear − the risks are spiraling on many fronts,” he said. “We have a shared responsibility to address those risks and pull the region back from the precipice.”
Netanyahu on strike:Israel says it will make its ‘own decisions’ on retaliation
Developments:
∎ The European Council said new sanctions would be imposed on Iran’s drone and missile programs as punishment for the weekend’s attack on Israel.
∎ The U.S. and Israel will hold a virtual meeting on Thursday about Israeli’s planned military operation in Rafah, Reuters reported, citing a U.S. official it did not name. The U.S. and most of the world has been urging Isrel to drop plans for an invasion of the southern Gaza city that has been ovewhelmed by Palestinians fleeing fighting elsewhere in the enclave.
∎ Two-thirds of Gaza residences have been destroyed or damaged since the war began in October, UNICEF reported.
∎ A special State Department panel recommended months ago that Secretary of State Antony Blinken disqualify multiple Israeli military and police units from receiving U.S. aid after reviewing allegations of serious human rights abuses. ProPublica reported. Blinken has thus far not acted on the recommendations.