UN Secretary-General António Guterres has urgently called on the Security Council to de-escalate the situation in the Middle East after Iran launched a direct attack on Israel in retaliation for a suspected Israeli strike.
"The Middle East is on the brink," Guterres told a special session of the body in New York. "The people of the region are confronting a real danger of a devastating full-scale conflict. Now is the time to defuse and de-escalate. Now is the time for maximum restraint."
The special meeting was convened at Israel's request a day after Tehran launched its aerial attack.
Iran's "Operation Truthful Promise" was mounted in revenge for an airstrike on its embassy grounds in Damascus on April 1 in which two generals and others were killed. Israel is believed to have carried out the attack and has not denied responsibility.
An Iranian response was widely expected and the Islamic Revolutionary Guards reportedly fired dozens of drones and missiles.
"We have a shared responsibility to work for peace," Guterres told the Security Council. "Neither the region nor the world can afford more war."
