Washington (agencies)
US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken called for avoiding further escalation in Lebanon and taking additional steps to increase humanitarian assistance to the besieged Gaza Strip.
US State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said in a press statement that this came during Blinken’s meeting in Washington with an Israeli delegation, including National Security Advisor Tzachi Hanegbi and Minister of Strategic Affairs Ron Dermer.
Miller added, “Blinken stressed the need to reduce the escalation in Lebanon and reach a diplomatic solution that allows Lebanese and Israeli families to return to their homes.”
In a related context, United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres stressed yesterday that Lebanon must not become “another Gaza,” denouncing the hostile rhetoric that “raises fears of an unimaginable catastrophe.”
Guterres told reporters, “Let us be clear: the peoples of the region and the peoples of the world cannot allow Lebanon to become another Gaza.”
He added, “I feel compelled to express my deep concern about the escalation between Israel and Lebanon along the Blue Line” drawn by the United Nations between Lebanon and Israel following the Israeli army’s withdrawal in 2000.
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