UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned on Friday that the Iran war has spun beyond all boundaries, declaring the conflict “out of control,” and cautioning that the world faces the prospect of a far broader confrontation.

Calling for an end to the military escalation, Guterres said it was time to ‘stop climbing the escalation ladder and start climbing the diplomatic ladder’ and return to full respect of international law.

Pointing to the key parties involved in the war, he told the United States and Israel that it is high time to end the war as human suffering deepens, civilian casualties mount, and the global economic impact is increasingly devastating.

Guterres urged Iran to end attacks on the Gulf countries, arguing that they are not parties to the conflict.

“More than three weeks on, this war is out of control,” Guterres told reporters at a news conference at UN headquarters in New York, adding that “the conflict has broken past the limits even leaders thought imaginable.”

“The world is staring down the barrel of a wider war, a rising tide of human suffering, and a deeper global economic shock,” he said, stressing that it “has gone too far.”

Highlighting the economic ripple effects of the war, Guterres said the prolonged closure of the Strait of Hormuz is choking the movement of oil, gas, and fertiliser at a critical moment in the global planting season.

Shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, a critical artery for global goods and energy trade, had been largely disrupted by escalating tensions in the Gulf following US and Israeli attacks on Iran and Tehran’s retaliation.

The strait, which connects Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Kuwait, Qatar, Iraq, and Iran to global markets, handles roughly 25 per cent of global oil trade, about 20 per cent of liquefied natural gas trade, and nearly 30 per cent of fertiliser trade.

The UN chief turned his attention to Lebanon and said, “Israel must stop its military operations and strikes in Lebanon, which are hitting civilians the hardest,” adding, “The Gaza model must not be replicated in Lebanon.”

In efforts to de-escalate tensions, Guterres further announced the appointment of Jean Arnault of France as his “personal envoy to lead the UN efforts on the conflict and its consequences.” Arnault was the UN chief’s personal envoy on Afghanistan and regional issues in 2021.

When asked for details about Arnault’s role, Guterres said he “will be doing everything possible to support all the efforts for mediation, all the efforts for peace, to be in contact with all the parties” in the Middle East.

Guterres emphasised the need for diploma and full respect for international law, expressing hope that the parties involved in the Iran war will reach an understanding to end ‘this horrible’ conflict.

He added: “Because the consequences of the conflict, that is totally out of control at the present moment, are absolutely devastating.”

The region has been shaken since the US and Israel launched a joint offensive on Iran on February 28, killing more than 1,300 people, including then-Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. (Arise News)

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