Israel demands Guterres resign over Gaza speech accusing UN chief of justifying terrorism

Описание: Israeli officials were outraged Wednesday over UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres' comment that the deadly Hamas attack on southern Israel "did not happen in a vacuum," calling it justification for terrorism.

Foreign Minister Eli Cohen cancelled a scheduled meeting with Guterres, posting on X" "There is no place for a balanced approach. Hamas must be erased off the face of the planet!”

Israel's envoy to the UN Gilad Erdan called for his resignation, saying Israel must rethink its relations with the world body.

"We will refuse to grant visas to UN representatives. We have already refused to give one to Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs Martin Griffiths," Erdan told Army Radio, accusing Guterres of justifying a slaughter. "It's time to teach them a lesson."

Israel has historically had tense relations with the UN, accusing it of bias.

On Tuesday, Guterres addressed a special Security Council meeting on the Israel-Hamas war that was sparked by the militant group's 7 October attack, which left at least 1,400 Israelis dead, and more than 220 taken hostage.

Israeli airstrikes have destroyed large swaths of the Gaza enclave, leaving at least 6,500 Palestinians killed, including over 2,700 children, according to the Hamas-run Health Ministry.

The UN chief told the council that he "condemned unequivocally the horrifying and unprecedented" attack.

"Nothing can justify the deliberate killing, injuring and kidnapping of civilians — or the launching of rockets against civilian targets," he said.

But his contextualisation of the attack created an uproar in Israel. It was important, Guterres said, to acknowledge that "the attacks by Hamas did not happen in a vacuum."

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