UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres speaks at a press encounter at the UN headquarters in New York on July 31, 2026. Guterres said Friday that fighting must stop on all fronts in the Middle East. (Xinhua/Xie E)
UNITED NATIONS, July 31 (Xinhua) -- UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said Friday that fighting must stop on all fronts in the Middle East.
"The fighting must stop on all fronts in the region. International navigation rights and freedoms in and around the Strait of Hormuz and Bab al-Mandab must be fully restored. And diplomacy must prevail," Guterres told reporters.
Six months into the military escalation in the Gulf, what began as a regional conflict is increasingly becoming a driver of global instability, he warned.
The UN chief noted that trade through the Strait of Hormuz has collapsed, energy markets have been upended, prices of food and key fertilizers have surged, and supply chains are buckling.
"Around the world we see families struggling to put food on the table, farmers unable to afford basic inputs, and vulnerable countries pushed closer to the edge," said Guterres.
The World Food Programme warned that as many as 45 million people could face acute food insecurity as a result, while rising prices and slowing growth threaten to push millions more back into poverty, he noted.
He called the U.S. announcement of an agreement for Hamas to relinquish its weapons and for Israel to withdraw its forces from Gaza "good news."
"It was announced already that there is a roadmap to implement these objectives. That roadmap must be followed without any questions, skepticism, or determination to undermine it. Now is the time for both sides to implement what was agreed," said Guterres. ■
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres speaks at a press encounter at the UN headquarters in New York on July 31, 2026. Guterres said Friday that fighting must stop on all fronts in the Middle East. (Xinhua/Xie E)
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres speaks at a press encounter at the UN headquarters in New York on July 31, 2026. Guterres said Friday that fighting must stop on all fronts in the Middle East. (Xinhua/Xie E)
