Lebanon's Warning at UNGA: 'Ceasefire Now or Israel's Actions Could Ignite Middle East Catastrophe'

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At the United Nations General Assembly, Lebanon's Foreign Minister issued a powerful warning: a ceasefire is urgently needed to prevent Israel's actions from igniting a devastating crisis in the Middle East. As tensions rise, the stakes for regional peace have never been higher. This is a call to action that cannot be ignored.    #Lebanon #UNGA #MiddleEast #Ceasefire #Israel #Crisis #Peace #ForeignPolicy #GlobalSecurity #Hezbollah                   ~HT.318~PR.274~GR.122~ED.102~

Transcript

00:00I now give the floor to His Excellency Abdullah Bouhabib, Minister for Foreign Affairs and

00:08Emigrants of Lebanon.

00:12Mr. President, I wish first and foremost to congratulate warmly you upon your election

00:39to the helm of the 79th session of the General Assembly of the United Nations.

00:44We wish you every success, and we convey to you our full support for your agenda, unity

00:54and diversity for the advancement of peace, sustainable development, and human dignity

01:00for present and future generations.

01:02Mr. President, Lebanon is currently enduring a crisis which is threatening its very existence.

01:08The future of our people and our prosperity are imperiled.

01:14This is a situation that requires international intervention on an urgent basis before the

01:19situation spirals out of control with a domino effect, making this crisis impossible to contain,

01:32just as it will be impossible to extinguish the flames of this crisis, which will transform

01:37into a black hole that will engulf regional and international peace and security.

01:42The crisis in Lebanon threatens the entire Middle East with the worst if this situation

01:49remains as it currently is and if the world remains immobile.

01:55Mr. President, we welcome the declaration delivered yesterday by the United States and

02:00by France, as supported by a number of friendly states, offering the possibility of long-term

02:09calm, helping to ensure the restoration of stability along the border, as well as the

02:14return of displaced persons.

02:16Furthermore, we demand that all possible measures be adopted for this declaration to be implemented.

02:25What we are currently experiencing in Lebanon is a consequence of the absence of a lasting

02:31sustainable solution.

02:32It is not the cause of an absence of a sustainable solution.

02:36The cause is the occupation, and we wish to reiterate this explicitly.

02:41The cause is the occupation.

02:43To claim anything else would be a loss of time.

02:49So long as the occupation persists, there will be instability and there will be war.

02:54We have repeatedly, on numerous occasions through the United Nations, we have striven

02:59to resolve border disputes with Israel.

03:04However, Israel has continuously eluded the issue or disregarded the matter.

03:12This is a difficult situation which we are experiencing, and in light of this, we are

03:17increasingly committed to international law.

03:20We are seeking refuge in the decisions under international law.

03:26To that end, Lebanon has contributed to the drafting of the Universal Declaration of Human

03:31Rights through one of our children, Shalm-Malek.

03:37And despite the inability of the United Nations to protect us from the Israeli aggression

03:42up until now, we remain committed to the role of this organization as a front line of defense

03:48in the face of occupation, violence, devastation, and oppression.

03:55Today, we desperately need the United Nations to play its role as a refuge for small countries

04:04who have been victimized by aggression.

04:07These countries include my homeland, Lebanon.

04:15And so this tragedy which we've experienced has broke out into this bitter reality.

04:19We have observed that dialogue is an alternative to the language of weapons to resolve conflict.

04:25We have demonstrated ability to be a reliable partner in building consensus, as was the

04:31case in October 2022 when the maritime borders were delimited between Lebanon and Israel.

04:38This is the best proof of our commitment to negotiations for peaceful dispute resolution.

04:45Furthermore, we proposed during two Security Council meetings, the most recent one was

04:50held on the 17th of June last, and the topic of address was the situation in the Middle

04:57East.

04:58We proposed an integrated framework to achieve a lasting pacification in the border south

05:04of Lebanon.

05:06And we wish to reiterate today our call for a ceasefire on all fronts, for this to be

05:12an opportunity and a prerequisite towards the full-fledged implementation of Resolution

05:181701 of the United Nations Security Council, which has been effective in establishing a

05:26relative degree of stability in the south of Lebanon since the end of the July 2006

05:32war up until 7 October 2023.

05:36We moreover are counting on the support of the international community, and specifically

05:41on the support of friendly countries in reinforcing the deployment of the Lebanese Army in the

05:48south of the Litani River, and delivering the necessary equipment to ensure that troop

05:56levels can be increased in the wake of the launch by the State of a conscription campaign

06:04as part of a clear commitment to the implementation of Resolution 1701.

06:09In this regard, there will be no weapons without the consent of the Lebanese Government, and

06:14there will be no other authority than that of the Lebanese Government, as is stipulated

06:21in the above-mentioned resolution.

06:24Our demand to secure support is not merely a reflection of our commitment to honoring

06:30our commitments under Resolution 1701.

06:35This is also our confirmation of the importance, reaffirmation of the importance of cooperation

06:42and support from the international community to surmount security-related challenges in

06:49order to bolster peace and security in the region.

06:53We are all cognizant of the economic crisis that has been plaguing our country, and despite

06:58this, our government has taken a decision for 100,000 additional soldiers to be deployed

07:05to the south of the country.

07:07And this is not a mere detail, quite the contrary, this is a clear political message to the international

07:15community reflecting the fact that Lebanon fully intends to implement Resolution 1701

07:22to which we are wedded.

07:25And even at the worst times, including the present, we are not standing idly by.

07:32We are mobilizing our efforts at the highest level to protect our people, our national

07:36institutions, as well as our sovereignty.

07:41Mr. President, among the most significant provisions of Resolution 1701, emphasizing

07:51the internationally recognized borders of Lebanon delimited between Lebanon and Palestine

07:56in 1923, the reaffirmed in the Lebanese-Israeli truce agreement signed on the Island of Rhodes

08:05in 1949 under the supervision of the United Nations.

08:12This will be achieved with the agreement on 13 points that are a source of discord.

08:21And pursuant to this, Israel will withdraw from all Lebanese regions that it has occupied

08:27and continues to occupy in the direction of the internationally recognized border.

08:32We wish to reiterate our commitment to the role of UNIFIL, the peacekeeping force which

08:42is active in the south of Lebanon, and since its inception it has significantly contributed

08:48to stability and peace in the region.

08:51Up until 8 October 2023, there had been no grave incident threatening regional peace

08:57and security that had been recorded, and we wish to take this opportunity to thank UNIFIL

09:01for the tremendous sacrifice it has made in light of the tremendous challenges it has

09:06been facing in particular over the past recent months, as well as specifically in recent

09:11days.

09:13Mr. President, Israel, instead of focusing on incessant wars, Israel is continuously

09:28radicalizing.

09:29One of the gravest challenges Lebanon currently faces is this increase in aggression.

09:37The war has expanded and spilled over into Lebanese regions.

09:45We are increasingly concerned due to the systematic destruction of Lebanese border villages, the

09:51collective punishment imposed on people, the setting of fire to agricultural lands with

09:57white phosphorus, thereby rendering these lands unusable for many years.

10:04We in recent days have borne witness to a detestable, repugnant example of the transformation

10:12of telecommunications devices.

10:15Civilian devices were transformed into ticking time bombs that were deliberately and simultaneously

10:21blown up, thereby claiming the lives of dozens, including children, including women, resulting

10:29in thousands of people being wounded, hundreds of whom are in critical condition, in addition

10:35to hundreds who were disfigured, maimed, who lost limbs, who lost their vision.

10:44From this rostrum, we reiterate our warning against this aggression, which is continuously

10:52intensifying, this attempt to play with fire, to plunge the entire Middle East into a conflagration.

11:01We reiterate our rejection of war, our legitimate right to defend ourselves pursuant to the

11:06Charter of the United Nations and international law.

11:11This goes hand in hand with our tireless efforts through our contacts and meetings

11:18to avoid falling into the trap of the Israeli occupying power, which is attempting to extend

11:24and prolong the war.

11:27Mr. President, the return of Israeli displaced persons to their cities and their settlements

11:34cannot be achieved through war, cannot be achieved through bombardment, fighting, hostilities

11:39or the displacement of Lebanese people.

11:41The shortest path for their return is a comprehensive, immediate ceasefire, as stipulated in the

11:50U.S. declaration, which was from yesterday supported by friendly states, a full implementation

11:58of Resolution 1701 as part of a comprehensive framework accompanied by clear international

12:04guaranteed transparent and an end, a definitive end to land, sea and air incursions and breaches

12:17of Lebanese sovereignty and our borders, our internationally recognized borders.

12:22This is necessary.

12:24These violations have exceeded, there have been more than 35,000 such violations since 2006.

12:32Mr. President, has Israel not had enough of the endless war since 1948?

12:40When will it be time for Israel to give a real opportunity for peace?

12:44Will Israel not embrace the path of peace?

12:48When will this happen?

12:49Instead of using the language of fire and steel, Lebanon and Arab countries have clearly,

12:56without any ambiguity, categorically embraced peace through their Arab Peace Initiative,

13:01which was the fruit of the Beirut Arab Summit in 2002, with the adoption by Arab states

13:08of the two-state solution through the demand of Arab states for the implementation of United

13:13Nations resolutions, which unfortunately have remained dead letter.

13:17It is now incumbent upon Israel, both the government and the people, Israel as a whole,

13:23if they really want peace, to embrace peace, to choose peace, to want peace instead of

13:27war, and to go beyond their obsessions and security-related anxiety, breaking the cycle

13:33of violence in the region, ending escalation, stopping escalation, and the risk of complete

13:38conflagration in the Middle East also requires collective efforts as part of a clear, defined

13:46timeline together with clear guarantees and recognition of legitimate rights, including

13:52the right to self-determination pursuant to international law.

13:56There can be no peace without the two-state solution, regardless of how much time this

14:00takes.

14:01Mr. President, by way of conclusion, we reiterate our call for a lasting solution, for the full

14:09balanced implementation of Resolution 1701, the recognition of our land borders recognized

14:19at the international level to ensure that Lebanon and the region can avoid further warfare

14:25and destruction.

14:26We are at a very difficult time, marred by a tragic escalation of violence in Lebanon

14:32from the heart of the conflict.

14:34The Resolution 1701 of the Security Council is the primary line of defense for Lebanon.

14:41This resolution is not merely a document, not merely a framework for international action.

14:46No, this is a commitment on the part of the international community to safeguard regional

14:52peace and security.

14:54We cannot deviate from this process insofar as this is the legal diplomatic bedrock guaranteeing

15:01the protection of Lebanese and regional security.

15:05Respecting this resolution is absolutely necessary, not just for Lebanon, but for Israel, too,

15:12and for the region as a whole.

15:14This is the best tool at the disposal of the international community to break this cycle

15:20of violence, to ensure that diplomacy prevails despite the fact that the path ahead is difficult.

15:32The cost of a diplomatic failure will be very high.

15:36For this reason, we must bear in mind that with each new wave of violence, there is unimaginable

15:41suffering endured particularly by civilians.

15:45Any civilian killed is a tragedy that is unacceptable, and there is no justification for this.

15:51When civilian areas are targeted systematically, as is currently the case in Lebanon, we are

16:02talking here about acts that are tantamount to war crimes.

16:07There can be no justification for the mass murder of civilians.

16:12However, as we talk about death and destruction, devastation, we also need to endeavor to find solutions.

16:25Time is of the essence.

16:26There's a need to embrace a political process to end this crisis which is escalating.

16:31There's a need to move forward to reach a political solution.

16:34We together need to give thought to a political solution to this crisis instead of bogging

16:44ourselves increasingly down in the militarization of this conflict, the escalation of the conflict,

16:49and the expansion of the conflict.

16:50Diplomacy is not always easy, but diplomacy is the only way to save innocent lives and

16:56homelands.

16:58For our part, we are determined to tread upon this path.

17:03Lebanon views the U.S.-French initiative, which was supported by other friendly countries,

17:11as an opportunity to generate momentum, to take steps towards ending this crisis.

17:22Diplomacy needs to succeed.

17:23There is no other choice.

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17:28Log on to OneIndia.com for more updates.

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