TEL AVIV, September 23. /TASS/. The unprecedented escalation between Israel and the Lebanese Shiite movement Hezbollah is confirmed by new increasingly dangerous events, Russian Ambassador to Israel Anatoly Viktorov told TASS.
He called on all sides to show maximum restraint. "In any case, the situation is extremely tense. Everyone is aware of reports of an unprecedented escalation, and unfortunately, this corresponds to what is happening today. The unprecedented nature of the current conflict is increasingly confirmed by new cases that are becoming even more dangerous," Viktorov said, citing a series of last week’s cyberattacks in Lebanon as such.
"We are aware of an attack using information and telecommunications technologies on September 17 and 18. Of course, we strongly condemn this action, as it poses new threats and new dangers to international relations, to global information security and - perhaps this is where we should have started - to the lives and health of innocent people, of peaceful citizens," Viktorov said, emphasizing that "the precedent is of highest danger level."
The Russian ambassador urged all the sides to "immediately cease fire, show maximum restraint, and move to a political and diplomatic settlement of the situation," as well as to "the implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 1701, which ended the so-called Second Lebanon War [conflict between Israel and Hezbollah] in 2006." Viktorov noted that "there are no other options."
"Conflicts in the Middle East, in particular the Arab-Israeli ones, the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, the situations on Israel's borders with Lebanon and on the Golan Heights [south-western Syria], have no military solution," he explained. "This is our principled, firm position based on deep knowledge of the processes taking place in the region. All other actions should be subordinate to this task," Viktorov continued.
The Russian ambassador recalled that "there are mechanisms for deconflicting, or resolving conflict situations," both "on the Israeli-Lebanese border and in the Golan Heights region." "These mechanisms are trilateral, involving the warring parties and UN representatives," he added, indicating that "all problems can and should be discussed and resolved within their framework.".