The escalation in Lebanon between Israel and Hezbollah is electrifying as much as it is dividing the United Nations General Assembly. On Wednesday 25 September in New York (6pm local time, midnight in Paris) an emergency meeting of the Security Council will be held to discuss the operations launched by Israel against the Iranian-backed militia.
While Israeli strikes have already caused several hundred deaths in two days and the Shiite movement is responding with rocket fire, the idea is to try to avoid an extension of the conflict, after almost a year of war in the Gaza Strip, following the Hamas attacks. , October 7, 2023.
On Tuesday, the number of warnings from heads of state and government that have been heard this week on the UN platform has increased, illustrating both the concern and the tensions generated by this new phase of violence between Israel, its allies and countries in the region, starting with Iran.
The fear of “another Gaza”
“Lebanon is on the brink of the abyss”UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres warned at the opening of the debates, fearing that the country would become “another Gaza”. “Gaza is a permanent nightmare that threatens to drag the entire region into chaos, starting with the land of the cedars. The Lebanese people, the Israeli people and the peoples of the world cannot allow Lebanon to become another Gaza.”He stressed this to representatives of the 193 member countries of the UN, including a hundred heads of state and government.
A little later, Joe Biden, in his final speech to the General Assembly after his withdrawal from the presidential race in favor of Kamala Harris, was more evasive. “We remain determined to avoid a wider war that would encompass the entire region”The American president observed: “Despite the escalation, a diplomatic solution remains possible.”
While he reiterated his call for a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, where fighting has caused, in almost a year, more than 41,000 victims, according to the authorities of the enclave controlled by Hamas, the American president has not been so explicit regarding Lebanon, despite the acceleration of events. The Democratic leader questioned the “permanent threat” represented by Iran, Hezbollah’s regional sponsor.
Divisions over the conflict
“We have always supported Lebanon and will continue to do so”For his part, Emmanuel Macron said on his arrival at the United Nations headquarters in the afternoon. The French head of state spoke at the end of the day with the Iranian president, Massoud Pezeshkian, asking for a “cease-fire” in northern Israel. He was due to address the General Assembly on Wednesday evening before leaving for Canada, but he was expected to allow the new Foreign Minister, Jean-Noël Barrot, to take part in the emergency session called at the express request of Paris.
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