IANS | 17 Apr, 2024
German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock has called on Iran and
Israel to show "maximum restraint" amid fears that the conflict in the
Middle East could expand into a major regional war.
"A spiral of escalation would serve no one," Baerbock warned just
after arriving on the Italian island of Capri ahead of a meeting of the
Group of Seven (G7) major industrialised democracies.
She said
that further escalation endangers the security of Israel, the lives of
the dozens of hostages still being held in the Gaza Strip by Palestinian
militants, civilians in Gaza as well as the "many people in Iran who
are themselves suffering under the regime."
With regard to the
recent Iranian attacks on Israel, Baerbock said that the aim was to
prevent "the highly dangerous situation in the Middle East from turning
into a regional conflagration."
She added: "As the G7, we speak with one voice: All players in the region are called upon to exercise maximum restraint."
Baerbock arrived in Capri on Wednesday from Israel, where she met with top Israeli leaders as part of a crisis diplomacy effort.
