UN Security Council. Photo from the archive UN Security Council held an emergency meeting on the situation in Lebanon Peace and Security
An emergency meeting of the Security Council on Lebanon was convened Wednesday evening at the initiative of France in connection with the sharp escalation of violence between Hezbollah and Israel. Over the past days, as UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres reported in his speech, Israel has hit 1,600 targets associated with the group in Lebanon.
According to the UN Secretary-General, exchanges of fire on the border between Israel and Lebanon have been taking place since October last year. 200,000 people in Lebanon and 60,000 in northern Israel have been forced to flee their homes.
Tensions have only grown since the last Security Council meeting on Lebanon, convened on September 20 in connection with the explosions of pagers and other devices. Israel is currently continuing its deadly strikes across Lebanon, including the southern suburbs of Beirut, Guterres said.
The Secretary General cited data on civilian casualties provided by the Lebanese Health Ministry: 569 people were killed on Monday and Tuesday, including 50 children and 94 women.
He called for an immediate end to the bloodshed. All displaced persons, Guterres noted, “must be able to return to their homes and live in safety and without fear.”
I urge the Council to join efforts to help put out this fire
He praised all diplomatic efforts being made to defuse tensions and pledged continued UN support for the ceasefire and increased humanitarian assistance to affected Lebanese civilians.
“Despite dangerous conditions, our peacekeepers remain in their positions,” the Secretary-General said. The UN Interim Force (UNIFIL) continues to serve, and some of the mission’s civilian personnel have temporarily relocated.
“I urge the Council to join forces to help put out this fire,” Antonio Guterres concluded his address to the UN Security Council members.