WASHINGTON, DC – Senator John Kerry made the following statement about the violence in Beirut:

“We’re in real danger now of the violence in Beirut escalating into a country-wide civil war with dire consequences for the region. For too long, Hezbollah has behaved as a state within a state and it’s brought Beirut to the brink of disaster. The United States needs to focus now on preventing a conflagration. We should first push the UN Security Council to call for a regional summit, and make it clear that there will be real consequences for outside interference in Lebanon’s domestic affairs. Second, we need to immediately send a high level envoy to lead our regional diplomatic efforts to resolve the crisis and work towards a sustainable solution to Lebanon’s political impasse. We’ve abdicated our leadership role in the region by ignoring Syria and Iran and allowing ourselves to be distracted and bogged down in Iraq while serious problems fester. That must end. We must engage our regional allies, as well as the Syrians and Iranians, to prevent a new Lebanese civil war and end the political paralysis. At this late stage, there’s no guarantee that U.S. engagement will save Lebanon, but it’s clear that the Administration’s current approach isn’t working.”

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