LUMBINI, Nepal, Oct 31, 2023 (BSS/AFP) - UN Secretary-General Antonio 
Guterres gave an impassioned plea for peace on Tuesday from a Nepalese site 
venerated as Buddha's birthplace, against a backdrop of conflict including in 
the Middle East, Ukraine and Sudan.

While on his visit to Nepal, Guterres has spoken of the urgent need for a 
ceasefire between Israel and Hamas to end the "nightmare" of bloodshed.

"In the Middle East, Ukraine, the Sahel, Sudan and many other places around 
the world, conflict is raging," Guterres said.

"Global rules and institutions are being undermined as human rights and 
international law are trampled."

Guterres held prayers at Lumbini in the south of the Himalayan nation, a site 
he called a place of "spirituality, serenity, and peace". 

The Buddha -- who renounced material wealth to embrace and preach a life of 
non-attachment -- founded a religion that now counts more than 500 million 
adherents.

"This is a place to reflect on the teachings of Lord Buddha. And to consider 
what his message of peace, interdependence, and compassion, means in today's 
troubled world," Guterres said.

"In these troubled times, my message to the world from the tranquil gardens 
of Lumbini is simple: Humanity has a choice. The path to peace is ours to 
take."

Guterres on Monday visited the Everest region, which is struggling from 
rapidly melting glaciers, and on Tuesday warned that the "impacts of the 
climate crisis are mounting".

"Humanity is at war with nature and at war with itself", he said.

The Buddha's birthplace was lost and overgrown by jungle before its 
rediscovery in 1896, when the presence of a third-century BC pillar bearing 
inscriptions allowed historians to identify it as Lumbini.

Since then, it has been designated a UNESCO World Heritage site and is 
visited by millions of Buddhists every year.