“Gravely concerned by dramatic escalation of events in Beirut”: UN Chief

NEW YORK (US): United Nations Chief Antonio Guterres has expressed concern over the rising violence in the Middle East, urging all sides to halt the cycle of violence immediately.

The remarks by Guterres follow Israeli airstrikes in Beirut that led to the death of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah.

Sharing a post on X, Guterres said, “I’m gravely concerned by the dramatic escalation of events in Beirut in the last 24 hours. This cycle of violence must stop now. All sides must step back from the brink.”

He added, “The people of Lebanon, the people of Israel, as well as the wider region, cannot afford an all-out war.”

Meanwhile, UNICEF has sounded the alarm over the strikes in Beirut, condemning the recent escalation that has claimed thousands of lives.

Sharing a post on X, UNICEF said, “Tragedy upon tragedy in Lebanon. The recent escalation has killed and injured thousands and instilled an unimaginable fear in people. The children of Lebanon need an immediate de-escalation.”

The Israel Defence Forces (IDF) also eliminated senior Hezbollah intelligence array terrorist Hassan Khalil Yassin in a precision strike in the Dahieh district in Beirut on Saturday, the military reported, according to a report by Jerusalem Post.

“Yassin stood at the head of a department responsible for the identification of civilian and military targets, on the northern border and deep within Israeli territory,” the IDF said.

It added, “As part of his role, Yassin collaborated intensely with all of Hezbollah’s offensive units, was personally involved in the planning of terror attacks that were executed during the war against Israeli civilians and soldiers, and planned additional attacks to be carried out in the coming days.”

Meanwhile, Hezbollah has officially acknowledged the death of its leader, Hassan Nasrallah, following Israeli strikes on Beirut, according to a report by CNN.

Hezbollah said on Saturday that its leader, Nasrallah, “has joined his fellow martyrs.” The group also vowed that it would “continue the holy war against the enemy and in support of Palestine,” Al Jazeera reported.

The Israeli Defence Forces launched precision strikes on the Lebanese capital in Beirut on Friday, which led to the death of Nasrallah.

Lebanon’s Health Ministry reported that the airstrikes targeting Hassan Nasrallah resulted in civilian casualties, with at least six people killed and dozens injured.

Also, Lebanon launched an attack on Israeli territory following the assassination of its leader, Nasrallah. In a post on X, IDF said, “Sirens sounded in the area of Jerusalem following a launch from Lebanon into Israeli territory.”

Also, following the death of Nasrallah, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu issued a warning to Iran’s Ayatollah regime and asserted that those who target Israel will face consequences and that no location in Iran or the Middle East is beyond Israel’s reach.

Netanyahu called Nasrallah as “main engine of Iran’s axis of evil” and added, “Nasrallah was not just another terrorist, he was the terrorist. He was the axis of the axis, the main engine of Iran’s axis of evil. He and his people were the architects of the plan to destroy Israel. He was not only operated by Iran, he also frequently operated Iran.”

He further said, “All those who oppose the axis of evil, all those who are fighting under the violent dictatorship of Iran and its proxies in Lebanon, Syria, Iran itself and other places, they are all filled with hope today. I say to the citizens of those countries: Israel stands with you. And to the ayatollahs’ regime, I say: Those who strike us, we strike them. There is no place in Iran or the Middle East that the long arm of Israel cannot reach. Today, you already know that this is correct.”

-ANI