The ongoing conflict in the breakaway region of South Ossetia of Georgia now appeared to be spreading into Abkhazia, another rebel enclave inside the country, a senior UN official said Saturday.
UN Assistant Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations Edmond Mulet briefed the Security Council Saturday afternoon on the situation in Georgia during the 15-member body's third emergency session since late Thursday.
Speaking to reporters after the meeting, Mulet said that hostilities are continuing in Georgia and there have been a "substantial number of casualties, refugees and destruction."
"We are particularly concerned that the conflict appeared to bespreading beyond South Ossetia into Abkhazia," he said.
Mulet said that UN peacekeepers have reported ongoing military preparations by the Abkhazian authorities and that shelling is already taking place in the region.
Mulet said he shared UN chief Ban Ki-moon's concern over these most recent developments and called on all parties to the conflict to guarantee the safety of UN peacekeepers.
He said he also conveyed to the council the secretary-general's call for a peaceful resolution of the conflict.
Source: Xinhua
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