UN’s Guterres calls world leaders to exercise restraint, stop escalation

 NEW YORK, Jan. 7 (YPA) – United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Monday called on the world leaders to stop escalating tensions, exercise maximum restraint, and restart dialogue.

 According to “Reuters”, Guterres warned on Monday that “geopolitical tensions reached their highest levels in this century.”

Without naming any country, Guterres told reporters: “This cauldron of tensions is leading more and more countries to take unexpected decisions with unpredictable consequences and a high risk of miscalculation.”

His warning came after the United States killed Maj. Gen. Qassim Soleimani, the most prominent Iranian general, on Friday, exacerbating the crisis that has fueled fears of a major fire in the Middle East.

The tension escalated between Washington and Tehran after the Pentagon announced, at dawn last Friday, responsibility for an air strike near Baghdad International Airport that killed Soleimani along with Deputy Head of the Iraqi Popular Mobilization Force Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, and others.

Meanwhile, Tehran said that it would respond harshly to the assassination, and a number of Iranian officials were quoted as saying that the response would be military against American forces in the region.

YPA