UN Secretary General António Guterres has again called for an urgent ceasefire in the Middle East, as Israel launched a series of airstrikes on Beirut. “War in Lebanon could lead to further escalation involving outside powers,” Guterres told the UN Security Council in New York on Friday. He called for a temporary ceasefire to allow for the delivery of humanitarian relief and the resumption of peace negotiations. “We need this ceasefire now. We cannot afford endless negotiations, as we have on Gaza,” he told the meeting. “We must avoid a regional war at all costs. Gaza remains the epicentre of …