From Israel’s perspective, UN Secretary-General Guterres’ statement on Iran’s missile strikes was not harsh enough — the government even declared him persona non grata. Today – at the Security Council – Guterres had clear words about the Iranian attack.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Tuesday publicly condemned the Iranian missile attack, after Israel’s sharp criticism. “The context of the condemnation that I expressed yesterday should have been clear, and I again strongly condemn Iran’s massive missile attack on Israel yesterday,” he told a UN Security Council meeting in New York.
After the Iranian attack yesterday, Guterres condemned the “expansion of conflict in the Middle East” but did not specifically mention Iran. Israel later criticized Guterres for not condemning the attack sufficiently and declared him a “persona non grata”. Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz accused him of bias against his country. Katz wrote on the platform of the United Nations.
Support for Guterres in the Security Council
In today’s meeting, the UN Many Security Council countries backed Guterres. Ambassadors from countries such as Great Britain, France, Russia, South Korea, Slovenia and Guyana expressed their support for the Portuguese UN chief. Algerian Ambassador Amar Benjamin said Israel’s decision to declare Guterres a “non-persona” “shows clear contempt for the UN system and the entire international community.”
However, the US reaffirmed its support for Israel at the meeting. Linda Thomas-Greenfield, the US ambassador to the UN, said Iran was partly to blame for the escalating crises in the Gaza Strip and Lebanon. Tehran was involved in Hamas’ October 7 terrorist attack on Israel, funding and training the group’s military wing.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guard “encouraged and enabled” Houthi rebels in Yemen to block global shipping with attacks. Iran supports militants who have attacked US troops in Syria and Iraq. Also, the Islamic Republic arms and supports Hezbollah fighters in Lebanon. “Let me be clear: the Iranian regime will be held accountable for its actions,” Thomas-Greenfield said. The United States warned Iran or its actors against further actions against the United States or Israel.
G7 report on Iran attack
The Iranian attack drew strong condemnation from the heads of state and government of the seven major Western industrialized nations (G7), Germany, France, Great Britain, Italy, Japan, Canada and the United States. They expressed concern over the escalation and reiterated that a conflict across the region is in no one’s interest, they said in a joint statement after the video conference. They stressed that a diplomatic solution was still possible and that they wanted to work together to reduce tensions in the Middle East.
Guterres criticizes Israel’s actions
The UN Secretary General also called for a ceasefire once again in the Security Council today. Iran’s attack will do nothing to “advance the cause of the Palestinian people or alleviate their suffering,” the secretary-general said. “This vicious cycle of mutual violence must end.”
Guterres has repeatedly expressed criticism of Israel in recent months and accused the military of violating international humanitarian law. He condemned the Hamas terror attack on October 7 the previous year – but noted Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territories, saying it did not happen “in a vacuum”.
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