Lebanese FM calls for efforts to avoid regional escalation

BEIRUT, Sept. 2 (Xinhua) — Lebanese Minister of Foreign Affairs and Emigrants Abdallah Bou Habib on Monday called for the comprehensive implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 1701 to avoid further escalation in the region.
“Implementing all UN resolutions in the region would build a lasting peace,” he said, adding that “military options would exacerbate the conflict.”
Bou Habib made the remarks in a phone call with his Swiss counterpart, Ignazio Cassis, to discuss the latest developments in the region.
Lebanon has repeatedly reaffirmed its commitment to UN Security Council Resolution 1701, which was adopted in 2006, and set in motion a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah, the withdrawal of Israeli forces from southern Lebanon and the establishment of demilitarized zone.
During the talks, Bou Habib also stressed “the importance of adopting unified standards in the ongoing conflict in Gaza and the West Bank, and moving urgently and seriously to ensure a ceasefire in Gaza, as well as the necessity of implementing all relevant international resolutions to ensure the establishment of a viable Palestinian state.”
For his part, the Swiss minister expressed his appreciation for “the distinguished relationship that links Lebanon and Switzerland,” and “their keenness to adopt international law as a basis for resolving disputes.”
Tensions along the Lebanon-Israel border escalated on Oct. 8, 2023, following a barrage of rockets launched by Hezbollah toward Israel in solidarity with Hamas’ attack on Israel the day before. Israel then retaliated by firing heavy artillery toward southeastern Lebanon. ■