The threat of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict expanding is growing every day, as shootouts between Israeli troops and the Shiite Hezbollah organization's armed formations in southern Lebanon occur on a regular basis, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said in a written statement prepared for the Security Council meeting on the Middle East, Report informs referring to TASS.
"The specter of further regional spillover is increasing by the day, as exchanges of fire across the Blue Line between Hezbollah and Israel continue," Guterres noted in a statement read by his Cabinet Chief Earle Courtenay Rattray.
The UN head pointed out that, according to the latest data from the Palestinian authorities, more than 38,000 people have died in the Gaza Strip since the conflict sprung out. In addition, Guterres said that "the humanitarian support system in Gaza is close to total collapse," while public order in the enclave is completely disrupted.
According to the Janoubia website, since the beginning of the military escalation in October 2023, 1,800 residential buildings were completely destroyed in southern Lebanon and about 10,000 were damaged. The number of dead civilians reached 104 during the 10 months of the conflict. Hezbollah and radical Palestinian groups lost 511 fighters.