In an address to an emergency meeting of the Security Council on Saturday, United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres cautioned against the crisis in Syria “spiraling out of control.“
The meeting was held following overnight airstrikes in Syria launched by the United States, with support from France and the United Kingdom, which targeted installations connected to the country’s chemical weapons capabilities.
In a televised address on Friday, US President Donald Trump announced the airstrikes, which were in response to last week’s suspected chemical attack in the Syrian city of Douma.
They were reportedly limited to three military locations, but Mr Guterres stated the UN is unable to verify this information or if there were any casualties.
“As Secretary-General of the United Nations, it is my duty to remind Member States that there is an obligation, particularly when dealing with matters of peace and security, to act consistently with the Charter of the United Nations and with international law in general,” he told the Council, echoing a statement issued in the wake of the airstrikes.
The UN chief called on the 15 ambassadors to unite and exercise their collective role in maintaining international peace and security.
“I urge all Member States to show restraint in these dangerous circumstances and to avoid any acts that could escalate matters and worsen the suffering of the Syrian people,” he further stated.
“As I did yesterday, I stress the need to avoid the situation from spiraling out of control.”
Mr. Guterres called the Syrian crisis, now in its eighth year, “the most serious threat to international peace and security.”
“In Syria, we see confrontations and proxy wars involving several national armies, a number of armed opposition groups, many national and international militia, foreign fighters from everywhere in the world, and various terrorist organizations,” he said.
The Secretary-General reiterated that there is no military solution to the crisis, only a political one.
–More to follow–
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