UN envoy: ‘Devastating’ Israel-Hamas clash averted in Gaza

The UN Mideast envoy says Israel and Hamas were “minutes away” from another “devastating confrontation” in Gaza on Saturday — a clash averted after UN and Egyptian diplomatic efforts got both sides to “step back from the brink.”

Nikolay Mladenov tells the Security Council Tuesday that he just returned from Gaza and “the situation is calming down although tensions remain” and the situation remains “perilous.”

He expresses hope that “with collective efforts by all sides we can avoid another war.”

But Mladenov warns that “unless we begin in earnest the crucial work required to change the current deteriorating dynamics, another explosion is almost a certainty.”

He stresses that “Gazans deserve to live their lives in freedom and dignity” and progress will require de-escalation and calm, greater coordination, and financial support.

— AP