UN Secretary-General: Iran Conflict Could Spiral Out of Control, World Faces Suffering

UN Headquarters (ANTARA) - UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, on Thursday, called on Israel and the United States (US) to stop operations against Iran, as they risk spiralling out of control, causing great suffering for civilians and impacting the global economy.

“It is time for the rule of law to prevail over the law of power. It is time for diplomacy to prevail over war,” Guterres told journalists on the sidelines of the High-Level Conference of European Union leaders.

The UN Secretary-General also urged Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz amid US and Israeli military attacks on the country.

Guterres also requested that Iran halt retaliatory attacks on neighbouring countries in the Gulf region, on the grounds that those countries “have never been parties to this conflict.”

“Prolonged closure of the Strait of Hormuz causes great suffering for many people around the world who have no connection to this conflict,” Guterres emphasised.

On 28 February, the US and Israel launched attacks on several targets in Iran, including in Tehran, causing damage and civilian casualties. Iran responded by attacking Israeli territory as well as US military facilities in the Middle East.

Escalation around Iran has led to a de facto halt in traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, the main shipping route for oil and liquefied natural gas from Persian Gulf countries to global markets, impacting oil exports and production in the region.

Iran’s Supreme Leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, in his first speech on 12 March, stated that the Strait of Hormuz must remain closed, calling it a tool of pressure in the conflict with the US and Israel.