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Middle East conflict

Lavrov says risk of Palestinian-Israeli conflict escalating into regional conflict 'high'

The Russian top diplomat has noted that Moscow favors the calls for preventing this conflict from spreading to the entire region and neighboring countries

PYONGYANG, October 19. /TASS/. The risk of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict escalating into a regional conflict is quite high, Russia considers attempts to blame everything on Iran as provocative, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said.

"As far as Gaza is concerned, the risk of this crisis escalating into a regional conflict is serious enough," Lavrov told reporters.

"We are observing attempts to blame everything on Iran and consider them quite provocative. The Iranian leadership, I believe, takes a rather responsible, balanced position and only calls for preventing this conflict from spreading to the entire region and neighboring countries," Lavrov added.

"We will seek exactly this in our contacts with the Palestinians, with other Arab colleagues and with the Israelis," the top Russian diplomat said.

Tensions flared up again in the Middle East on October 7 when militants from the radical Palestinian movement Hamas staged a surprise attack on Israeli territory from the Gaza Strip. Hamas described its attack as a response to the aggressive actions of Israeli authorities against the Al-Aqsa Mosque in the Old City of Jerusalem. Israel has announced a total blockade of the Gaza Strip as it has been delivering rocket attacks on Gaza as well as some districts in Lebanon and Syria. Clashes are also taking place in the West Bank.

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Foreign policy Sergey Lavrov

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