UN urges cessation of hostilities in Lebanon

China

UN urges cessation of hostilities in Lebanon

2026-05-06 10:46 Last Updated At：16:17

The United Nations called on all parties to exercise maximum restraint and cease hostilities to uphold the ceasefire, said a UN spokesman on Tuesday.

The United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) reported on Monday that the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) engaged in intense exchanges of fire with armed groups, including Hezbollah.

This marked the heaviest round of fighting since the ceasefire between Lebanon and Israel took effect on April 17, said Stephane Dujarric, spokesman for the UN secretary-general, at a press briefing.

UNIFIL monitored more than 600 rounds fired by the IDF into Lebanese territory on Monday, while 30 rounds were fired from the Lebanese side toward Israel. During the fighting, the IDF deployed fighter jets and helicopters, while Hezbollah deployed armed drones, said the spokesman.

He also revealed that the UN Security Council's closed-door consultations on Tuesday concluded that the situation in Lebanon remains highly unstable.

According to Lebanese reports, since the restart of the Lebanon-Israel conflict on March 2, the number of people killed has reached 2,679, including at least 177 children, with more than 8,200 injured and over one million still displaced.

Despite operational risks and movement restrictions, UNIFIL peacekeepers remain at their posts in southern Lebanon, said Dujarric.

He stressed that the UN calls on all parties to exercise maximum restraint, uphold the cessation of hostilities, fully implement Security Council Resolutions 1559 and 1701, and support all efforts that help preserve Lebanon's sovereignty and territorial integrity and ensure the Lebanese government's effective jurisdiction over its territory.

China congratulates prime minister of Antigua and Barbuda on re-election: spokesman

China congratulates Prime Minister of Antigua and Barbuda Gaston Browne on his re-election, a Foreign Ministry spokesman said on Wednesday.

Lin Jian, the spokesman, made the remarks at a regular press briefing in Beijing in response to a media question about the country's elections.

"China congratulates Prime Minister Browne on his re-election. Antigua and Barbuda is a good friend and good partner of China in the Caribbean region. China is willing to work together with Antigua and Barbuda to continue to deepen bilateral pragmatic cooperation in various fields, promote the friendly relations between the two countries to a new level to better benefit the peoples of the two countries," he said.

Official results released on Friday showed that the incumbent Prime Minister Gaston Browne had won an unprecedented fourth consecutive electoral victory. Browne's Labor Party won 15 of the parliamentary seats in the eastern Caribbean island-nation, while the main opposition United Progressive Party won only one seat.