Guterres picks Jean Arnault for Middle East mission

U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Wednesday named veteran French diplomat Jean Arnault to be his personal envoy on the conflict in the Middle East, saying it was "out of control" and the "world is staring down the barrel of a wider war."

Guterres told reporters he had been in close contact with many in the region and around the world and that a number of initiatives for dialogue and peace were underway.

He said these must succeed and warned that prolonged closure of the Strait or Hormuz was choking movement of oil, gas, and fertilizer at a critical moment in the global planting season.

"It is time to stop climbing the escalation ladder – and start climbing the diplomatic ladder," he said at the U.N. headquarters in New York.

"My message to the United States and Israel is that it is high time to end the war – as human suffering deepens, civilian casualties mount, and the global economic impact is increasingly devastating," Guterres said.

"My message to Iran is to stop attacking their neighbors," he added.

Guterres said Hezbollah must stop launching attacks into Israel and Israel must stop its military operations and strikes in Lebanon, which were hitting civilians the hardest.

"The Gaza model must not be replicated in Lebanon," he said."

Disrupted fertilizer shipments and soaring energy prices from the war in Iran have threatening to unleash a fresh food-price surge across vulnerable nations, risking a years-long setback just as many were recovering from successive global shocks, U.N. and other experts warn.

The U.N. says Arnault has more than 30 years of experience in international diplomacy focusing on peace settlements and mediation, with a background in United Nations missions in Africa, Asia, Europe and Latin America.

His most recent assignment was in 2021 as Guterres' personal envoy on Afghanistan and regional issues.