THE HAUGE, Feb. 28 (Xinhua) -- The Dutch government on Saturday called on all parties to exercise restraint to prevent further escalation in the Middle East.

Dutch Prime Minister Rob Jetten said in a post on the social media platform X that the Netherlands is closely monitoring developments in the region.

"We are also working closely with our European partners to gather as much information as possible in order to respond appropriately at the right time," Jetten told the local media RTL on Saturday.

"It is now evident that we are mainly witnessing a violent escalation, which we hope will not spiral further out of control," he added.

Earlier on Saturday, Dutch Minister of Foreign Affairs Tom Berendsen wrote on X that the Dutch government is in contact with Dutch embassies in the region regarding the situation. " Stability in the region is essential," Berendsen said.

On Saturday morning, Israel and the United States launched joint strikes on Tehran and several other Iranian cities.

The Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced on Friday that it has raised its travel advisory to red for the border areas between Israel and Gaza, Lebanon and Egypt due to rising tensions in the Middle East. ■