Author: MIL-OSI Publisher

Source: United Nations (video statements)

Remarks by António Guterres, United Nations Secretary-General, on advancing political solutions in the Middle East: mediation and dialogue for a lasting peace.

Guterres warned that the Middle East is being pulled deeper into crisis, as this week has brought wider attacks and further deterioration, and said, “a brutal price is being paid by the region’s people, and it is extending to the wider world, particularly the most vulnerable countries and communities.”

Escalation in the Middle East, Guterres said, “reverberates across borders and continents, through political tensions, displacement and rising insecurity, through markets and trade routes, through food and fuel costs.”

In Lebanon, he said, “we have witnessed a serious escalation as Israel intensified its operations in Lebanese territory and Hezbollah fired deeper into Israel.

Guterres said, “we have seen the killing of civilians, entire communities uprooted and extensive demolition of homes and civilian infrastructure in southern Lebanon, the forced displacement of over a million civilians, the killing of seven UN peacekeepers, including one last week. And through it all, the risk and reality of war escalation.”

Gaza, he continued, “still faces profound uncertainty and immense human suffering,” as “violence is on the rise, with civilians killed on a daily basis.”

The Secretary-General said, humanitarian operations “remain heavily constrained, “as “basic human needs for clean water, sanitation, food, shelter, healthcare, and more are going unmet. And the Israeli government is declaring its intent to control 70 percent of the Strip. “

In the West Bank, he said, “reports of settler violence now averaging six attacks per day; the demolition of homes; destruction of farms and confiscation of lands; the relentless expansion of illegal Israeli settlements; the ongoing displacement of Palestinians at levels not seen since 1967; the threat of an attempt of annexation that would, like the decades long occupation, have no legal validity; the risk of making a two-state solution impossible when there is no other viable option. And throughout, the presumption of impunity.”

Guterres said, “civilians and civilian infrastructure have come under attack in multiple countries,” and stressed that “all threats to national sovereignty and territorial integrity are violations to international law.”

At the same time, he said, “restrictions on navigational rights and freedoms in and around the Strait of Hormuz are causing hardship and instability across the world, driving up energy prices and disrupting supply chains, making fertilisers more costly and hunger more prevalent, pushing up inflation and piling on debt, and in fragile states, raising the risk of fresh conflicts.”

Even in the best-case scenario, the Secretary-General said, “these shocks will be felt for many months, with developing countries bearing the heaviest impact,” and called on all parties “to honour the ceasefire and redouble efforts to reach a lasting agreement.”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=97YMDi1zd9Y

Source: United Nations (video statements)

Noon briefing by Farhan Haq, Deputy Spokesperson for the Secretary-General.

Highlights:
– Secretary-General/Middle East
– United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon
– Lebanon
– Occupied Palestinian Territory
– Yemen/Detainees
– Yemen/Special Envoy
– Afghanistan
– Sudan
– Central African Republic
– Mali
– Democratic Republic of the Congo
– Dialogue among Civilizations
– Refugees/Exhibit

SECRETARY-GENERAL/MIDDLE EAST

This morning, the Secretary-General warned the Security Council this morning that the Middle East is being pulled deeper into crisis – and the consequences reach far beyond the region. This week has brought wider attacks and further deterioration, he said.

Mr. Guterres said that he is profoundly concerned it could trigger a full resumption of conflict.

He said that the ceasefire is more like a lesser-fire – as we have seen with the escalating attacks and rhetoric over the last 48 hours. We should not minimize the risks of lesser fire becoming full fire – in other words, full-scale war.

The world needs to see a complete ceasefire, the Secretary-General said, with navigational rights and freedoms restored, in line with international law and Security Council resolution 2817, and serious negotiations on the nuclear issues –ensuring that Iran’s nuclear programme is exclusively peaceful.

On Lebanon, he warned that since March, we have witnessed a serious escalation –as Israel intensified its operations in Lebanese territory and Hizbullah fired deeper into Israel. All parties must work towards a diplomatic settlement that fully respects the territorial integrity, sovereignty, and political independence of Lebanon within its internationally recognized borders – in line with Security Council resolution 1701, he said. And he urged a continued UN uniformed presence following the departure of UN Interim Force in Lebanon(UNIFIL).

He added that the situation in the Occupied Palestinian Territory – namely Gaza and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem – is rapidly deteriorating. Despite the ceasefire announced eight months ago, Gaza still faces profound uncertainty and immense human suffering.

The Secretary-General urged all parties to implement in full and without delay the Comprehensive Plan facilitated by the United States, Qatar, Egypt, and Türkiye.

UNITED NATIONS INTERIM FORCE IN LEBANON

Yesterday, the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) continued to report intensive and widespread Israel Defense Forces (IDF) air and ground activity across and just north of its area of operations. UNIFIL recorded at least 15 IDF airstrikes involving fighter aircraft, helicopters, and drones. According to Lebanon’s Ministry of Health, airstrikes targeting Tyre yesterday killed at least 11 people and injured 44 others.

Yesterday, UNIFIL detected 80 violations of Lebanese airspace by the Israel Defense Forces, amounting to more than 126 hours of overflight. UNIFIL also recorded a total of 447 projectile trajectories, of which 442 originated from IDF positions. The remaining five trajectories were allegedly fired by Hizbullah.

Peacekeepers continue to be directly affected by ongoing hostilities. Yesterday, UNIFIL personnel at a checkpoint west of Kleyaa in Sector East witnessed intense ground combat in close proximity to their position. Armed individuals were observed firing AK-47s and a light machine gun from a residential building adjacent to the checkpoint.

The same UNIFIL position was exposed to significant risk throughout the day, including 24 artillery impacts landing as close as 300 to 400 metres, three suicide drone detonations nearby, and an airstrike in the vicinity. Peacekeepers were forced to take shelter. While no personnel were injured, the facility sustained damage, including cracked walls and shattered windows. We reiterate that UN premises and personnel must be respected and protected at all times and must never be targeted under any circumstances.

In a separate incident, UNIFIL discovered a grenade and a drone near the main gate of a position near Marjayoun in Sector East. The area was secured, and a UNIFIL explosive ordnance disposal team safely neutralized both devices.

Working in coordination with OCHA, UNIFIL’s Liaison branch facilitated the deconfliction of six planned humanitarian missions to the Tyre area in Sector West yesterday. However, all were subsequently cancelled following new displacement orders issued by the IDF affecting Tyre and surrounding areas. This underscores the increasingly constrained humanitarian space and the growing impact on civilians. Continued displacement orders are forcing people to flee while disrupting the delivery of life-saving assistance.

Full Highlights: https://www.un.org/sg/en/content/noon-briefing-highlight?date=2026-06-10

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ICeDPGfmGRI