Jerusalem: In a dramatic move, Israel’s Foreign Minister said Wednesday that United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres would be expelled from the country, accusing him of being biased against the country. Foreign Minister Israel Katz said he was declaring Guterres “persona non grata” and that he would be prevented from entering Israel.
“Anyone who cannot unequivocally condemn Iran’s heinous attack on Israel, as almost every country in the world has done, does not deserve to set foot on Israeli soil. This is a Secretary General who has yet to denounce massacre and atrocities committed by Hamas assassins on October 7, nor has he led any effort to declare them a terrorist organization,” he said.
Katz also accused the UN Secretary-General of supporting “terrorists, rapists and murderers from Hamas, Hezbollah, the Houthis and now Iran, the mothership of global terror” and added that Guterres will be remembered as a stain on the history of the UN. . “Israel will continue to defend its citizens and defend its national dignity, with or without António Guterres,” he stressed.
Katz’s comments also came after Iran’s largest missile attack on Israel, just hours after Israel launched what it called a “limited” ground incursion into southern Lebanon against Hezbollah. There were no immediate reports of injuries on the ground in Israel and the Israeli military said around 180 missiles were fired, most of which were intercepted.
Tensions between Israel and the UN
Israel’s move deepens an already wide gap between Israel and the United Nations. Both sides have been at odds over Israel’s extreme military offensive in Lebanon and Gaza, with Guterres repeatedly calling for an immediate ceasefire. Guterres on Tuesday condemned “escalation after escalation” as the Middle East moved closer to all-out war and reiterated the need for a ceasefire.
“I condemn the widening of the conflict in the Middle East, with one escalation after another. This must stop. We absolutely need a ceasefire,” he said in a statement. Israel has expressed strong criticism of the UN response, saying: “We condemn your failure to publish a tweet that blames Iran for firing 181 ballistic missiles at 10 million Israeli civilians.”
The UN has repeatedly criticized Israel’s use of destructive violence in Gaza, which has killed more than 41,000 people, and has urged a de-escalation and immediate cessation of hostilities. He also passed several resolutions aimed at stopping the nearly year-long war, most of which were vetoed by the United States.
On the other hand, Israel has long felt that the UN treats it unfairly and has previously reacted strongly to decisions and speeches made by the organization, which comprises Muslim-majority states and many countries in the Global South that criticize Israel and raise the Palestinian issue.
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