the southern suburbs of Beirut heavily bombed during the night

the southern suburbs of Beirut heavily bombed during the night
the southern suburbs of Beirut heavily bombed during the night

Security Council “fully” supports UN chief, “persona non grata” in Israel

On Thursday evening, the UN Security Council provided its « plein » support for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, who Israel said « persona non grata » for not immediately condemning Iran’s strikes on Tuesday.

Without ever mentioning Israel, the five permanent members of the Council and the ten other non-permanent members “underlined the need for all member states [de l’ONU] to have a productive and functioning relationship with the Secretary General and to refrain from any action that undermines his work and that of his services”.

Et “any decision that does not involve the UN Secretary General or the United Nations is counterproductive, particularly in the context of escalating tensions in the Middle East”warned the fifteen countries, including the United States, China, Russia, the United Kingdom and , in a written declaration from the Council chaired in October by Switzerland.

Relations between the UN and Israel – a state created by a United Nations resolution passed in 1947 – are notoriously difficult and at their lowest point since October 7, 2023, the date of the attack by Palestinian Hamas which sparked the war in Gaza.

On Wednesday, during a daggers-drawn session at the Security Council, in the presence of the Israeli and Iranian ambassadors, Mr. Guterres took care to “condemn, once again, forcefully, the massive missile attack by Iran on Israel”. However, he had sent the two enemies back to back by denouncing “the sickening cycle” of violence in a region on the edge of “precipice”.

While the Council has been paralyzed for a decade, Mr. Guterres immediately received the support of the fifteen members, including the United States judging the measure of their Israeli ally « non productive ». Same tone at the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs which regretted Thursday “the unjustified, serious and counterproductive decision taken by Israel”. The head of European diplomacy, Josep Borrell, also called for “reject attacks” against Mr. Guterres.

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