UN chief says Israeli bombings threaten US‑Iran truce
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- UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres (via spokesperson) warned that ongoing Israeli strikes on Lebanon pose a grave risk to the fragile US‑Iran ceasefire and called for an immediate stop to hostilities.
- Lebanese health ministry reported that Israeli strikes on Wednesday killed 182 people and wounded 890, with Beirut experiencing its most violent bombardment since the Israel‑Hezbollah war began.
- Israel insisted that Lebanon is not part of the two‑week US‑Iran ceasefire agreed on Tuesday, while Hezbollah fired rockets toward Israel and Iran's parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf threatened the ceasefire.
- UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk called the scale of killing and destruction in Lebanon “nothing short of horrific” and said it defies belief within hours of the US‑Iran ceasefire agreement.
- French President Emmanuel Macron joined calls for Lebanon to be included in the ceasefire, urging all parties to use diplomatic channels.
- International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) condemned the scale of killing and destruction in Lebanon as horrific.
Why it matters: The escalation threatens the two‑week US‑Iran ceasefire, raises civilian death tolls, and draws condemnation from the UN, ICRC and France, underscoring how Israeli attacks on Lebanon could unravel fragile diplomatic progress and deepen regional instability and jeopardize future negotiations on broader Middle East peace.
