UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has come under fire from the Israeli government after he implied that the Jewish state’s continued control over Palestinian territories was what led to the devastating Hamas terror attack on Israel on 7 October. As a result, Israel has started to refuse visas to UN officials and has demanded the resignation of Antonio Guterres.
During a UN Security Council meeting on the Israel-Hamas war, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres tried to contextualise the Hamas terror attack by saying, “it is important to also recognize the attacks by Hamas did not happen in a vacuum,” generating angry reaction from Israel. Gilad Erdan, the country’s representative to the organisation called the statements “shocking” and insisted that the secretary general step down. A meeting between Guterres and Foreign Minister Eli Cohen, who is visiting the US, was also called off and former Minister of Defence Benny Gantz called the UN chief a “terror apologist.”
The @UN Secretary-General, who shows understanding for the campaign of mass murder of children, women, and the elderly, is not fit to lead the UN.
— Ambassador Gilad Erdan גלעד ארדן (@giladerdan1) October 24, 2023
I call on him to resign immediately.
There is no justification or point in talking to those who show compassion for the most…
According to Israel’s UN envoy Gilad Erdan, the remarks were “horrible” and “completely disconnected from the reality in our region.” He expressed, “It’s sad that a person with such views is the head of an organisation that arose after the Holocaust. It’s really unfathomable.”
Israel has now refused to grant visas to UN officials in light of the development. Erdan said that the time has come to teach them a lesson, adding that one UN top official was already denied visa to visit Israel as a retaliation to the comments of Secretary-General Antonio Guterres. “Due to his remarks, we will refuse to issue visas to UN representatives. We have already refused a visa for Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs Martin Griffiths. The time has come to teach them a lesson,” highlighted the UN Ambassador.
The foreign minister announced on X (formerly Twitter) that he was postponing a scheduled meeting with Antonio Guterres. He had flown to New York to participate in the meetings regarding the present dispute. “There is no place for an even-handed approach. Hamas needs to be wiped off the face of the earth,” he wrote after the horrific events of 7 October.
Retired army general Benny Gantz who joined the administration lately and is part of the small war cabinet that is in charge of managing the military effort took to social media to express his anger. “Dark are the days when the United Nations Secretary-General condones terror.” He stressed that “absolutely nothing” can excuse the killing of innocent persons.
Dark are the days when the United Nations Secretary General condones terror.
— בני גנץ – Benny Gantz (@gantzbe) October 24, 2023
Absolutely nothing can justify the slaughter of innocent civilians.
Now is the time to stand on the right side of history, or be judged by it.
Terror apologists cannot speak on behalf of the world.
Meanwhile, Foreign Minister Eli Cohen addressed the United Nations Security Council amid the war with Hamas and pointed out, “This massacre will go down in history as more brutal than ISIS (Islamic State of Iraq and Syria). Hamas are the new Nazis. Just as the civilised world united to defeat Nazis and ISIS, they have to stand behind Israel to defeat Hamas. Let us not be mistaken about their intention. I am sure the Secretary-General can read it. Their charter calls for the destruction and elimination of the state of Israel. This will never happen.”
"HAMAS ARE THE NEW NAZIS"
— i24NEWS English (@i24NEWS_EN) October 24, 2023
"This massacre will go down in history. Hamas are the new Nazis… The civilized world has to stand united with Israel to defeat Hamas"
Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen addresses United Nations Security Council amid war with Hamas pic.twitter.com/rI9DS3Tyys
The minister mentioned the ages and names of some of the Israeli children who were murdered by Hamas. “There are just a few of the many children and babies who have not seen evil. They have not caused evil, but they are victims of evil. These kids witnessed horror that cannot be described by words. Mr Secretary-General in what world do you live,” he asked in a sharp dig posed at the UN official and added, “Definitely, this is not our world.”
ISRAELI FM ADDRESSES U.N. SECURITY COUNCIL AMID WAR
— i24NEWS English (@i24NEWS_EN) October 24, 2023
"These kids witnessed horror that cannot be described… Mr. Secretary General: In what world do you live? Definitely this is not our world," says Cohen at the UN pic.twitter.com/xjLLXNmMPO
“They went from house to house, slaughtering entire families and individuals in their beads, on the streets, on the way to the synagogue. Raping women, burning them alive, dancing and chanting on people’s bodies. You have not been there. You have not seen the horror or smelled it,” voiced the minister of foreign affairs. The families of several of the people held hostage in Gaza were present at the Security Council meeting along with him.
"They went from house to house, slaughtering entire families… Raping women, burning them alive, dancing and chanting on people bodies… You have not been there, you haven't seen the horror or smell it ," says Eli Cohen, Israel's Defense Minister pic.twitter.com/CAU955BuC4
— i24NEWS English (@i24NEWS_EN) October 24, 2023
Speaking at the forum, the minister forewarned that Gaza is headed for its “darkest hour” under Antonio Guterres’s leadership if the UN does not support the effort to eradicate Hamas.
Controversial statements by Antonio Guterres
Israel has been outraged by pro-Hamas comments made by the United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres who alleged, “It is important to also recognize the attacks by Hamas did not happen in a vacuum,” at a UN Security Council meeting on the Israel-Hamas war. The terror outfit massacred almost 1,400 people, the great majority of whom were civilians as it tore through Israeli border villages which triggered the war.
However, he put accountability for the ghastly assault on the Jewish state and claimed, “The Palestinian people have been subjected to 56 years of suffocating occupation. They have seen their land steadily devoured by settlements and plagued by violence. Their economy was stifled, their people were displaced and their homes were demolished. Their hopes for a political solution to their plight have been vanishing.”
“The grievances of the Palestinian people cannot justify the appalling attacks by Hamas. And those appalling attacks cannot justify the collective punishment of the Palestinian people,” he added alluding to Israel’s ongoing bombardment in the Gaza Strip which thousands of people have reportedly died from, according to Hamas officials.
He alleged to be “deeply concerned about the clear violations of international humanitarian law that we are witnessing in Gaza. Let me be clear, no party to an armed conflict is above international humanitarian law.” He proclaimed, “The relentless bombardment of Gaza by Israeli forces, the level of civilian casualties, and the wholesale destruction of neighbourhoods continue to mount and are deeply alarming.”
He demanded that all of the captives get humane treatment and be “released immediately and without conditions,” and noted that he already “condemned unequivocally the horrifying and unprecedented acts of terror by Hamas.”
Israel has enforced a near-total embargo on Gaza in addition to its military campaign, however, in recent days, a compromise mediated by the US has allowed some humanitarian aid to pass through Egypt. He remarked, “But that is a drop of aid in an ocean of need,” and issued a warning that Gaza will experience a “disaster” if its gasoline runs out.
He sought “an immediate humanitarian ceasefire” and cautioned that the violence “risks spiralling throughout the region.” He additionally recommended the creation of a Palestinian state alongside Israel as part of a two-state solution.
Leading diplomats attended the Security Council meeting, including US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who has previously rejected requests for a truce on the grounds that it would merely give Hamas time to recover. Meanwhile, the UN on 24 October advocated for better coordination amongst humanitarian organisations to guarantee that the supplies of relief now entering the Strip comprised only the necessities.
Hamas attacks Israel
On October 7, thousands of missiles fired by Hamas rapidly descended into Israel as more than 2,500 assistants broke through the border into the country. They slaughtered everyone they came across during their savage rampage through the southern regions. They end the lives of entire families in some towns.
260 people died in the massacre at one outdoor music festival. Numerous infants passed away. More than 220 persons of various ages were kidnapped and taken as prisoners back to Gaza before the Israel Defence Forces could stop the incursion and only four of them have been released so far.
Israel has launched heavy attacks in Gaza and vowed to eliminate the terror organisation in retaliation and informed that terror targets are being hit while attempting to prevent civilian losses. More than a million people in Gaza have been ordered to leave the northern portion of the Strip in anticipation of an anticipated ground invasion.
Over 5,700 Palestinians have died as a result of the strikes, per the Health Ministry, which is under Hamas control. These numbers which are believed to involve civilians killed by Palestinian missile misfires as well as members of Hamas itself, cannot be independently confirmed.
Notably, in accordance with the 2005 Disengagement, Israel vacated the Gaza Strip of all settlements and armed forces. Both Egypt and Israel have kept a strict blockade of the region in place since Hamas seized power in 2007. Jerusalem argued that this is necessary to prevent the terror group from amassing weapons for future assaults. With Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu constantly asserting that the internationally recognised Palestinian Authority is not a partner for peace and having previously turned down multiple offers, settlements in the West Bank have grown under successive administrations.
