Spanish PM, Palestinian leader urge Lebanon de-escalation

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez on Thursday called for a de-escalation of the conflict in the Middle East, as Lebanon said 37 people had now been killed by booby-trapped hand-held devices.

"Today the risk of escalation is once more increasing in a dangerous way" in Lebanon, said Sanchez, at a news conference with visiting Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas.

"So we must again make a fresh appeal for restraint, for a de-escalation and for peaceful coexistence between countries, in the name of peace," he added.

Sanchez was speaking to journalists after more than an hour's talks with Abbas.

Neither Sanchez nor Abbas referred directly to the explosions in Lebanon, which took place on Tuesday and Wednesday.

Israel has not yet commented on the unprecedented wave of attacks in which Hezbollah operatives' pagers and walkie-talkies exploded in supermarkets, on streets and at funerals.

But Lebanon's Prime Minister Najib Mikati on Thursday called on the United Nations to intervene in what he called Israel's "technological war" against it.

Lebanon's Health Minister Firas Abiad said Thursday 37 people had been killed and more than 3,500 wounded in the explosions of the hand-held devices over the last two days.

Sanchez pointed out that this is Abbas's first visit to Spain since Madrid took the decision to recognize the state of Palestine, on May 28. Ireland and Norway took the same decision in May.