Israel vows to ‘evaluate relations’ with UN after Guterres’ statements

Israel will conduct an “assessment of its relations” with the UN after a speech by the organization’s Secretary General Antonio Guterres, said Israel’s permanent representative to the UN Gilad Erdan.

In his speech, the UN Secretary General expressed the opinion that the Hamas attack on Israel did not occur out of nowhere, while Palestine and its people have been under occupation for more than 50 years. However, he said that this is not an excuse for Hamas’ actions.

Erdan criticized the speech of UN Secretary Antonio Guterres at the UN Security Council meeting, calling it “shocking.” He also said that the UN Secretary General was “out of touch with the reality” of the Middle East, and considered his statements “distorted” and “immoral.” Erdan accused the UN Secretary General of justifying terrorism and called on him to apologize for his words or resign.

Earlier, the UN reported the death of six of its employees of the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) in Gaza. This brings the total number of UNRWA personnel killed to 35.

On February 19 next year, hearings will begin at the UN International Court of Justice on the issue of “Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territory, including East Jerusalem.” It also became known that Palestine will file a complaint with the International Criminal Court (ICC) against Israel’s actions. It is reported that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other leaders of the country will be personally accused of genocide.

On the morning of October 7, Israel was subjected to an unprecedented-scale rocket attack from the Gaza Strip as part of Operation Al-Aqsa Flood, announced by the military wing of the Palestinian Hamas movement. At the same time, organized groups of Hamas fighters began to penetrate into Israeli territory, who easily overcame the first line of defense of the Israeli army, took hostages and caused serious damage. Israel later launched Operation Iron Swords, attacking the Gaza Strip and cutting off all supplies of water, food, electricity, medicine and fuel.

At the moment, the number of deaths from Israeli army strikes in the Gaza Strip has exceeded 4,600, including 20 Russian citizens, and the number of wounded has exceeded 14 thousand. In addition, Hamas militants may be holding up to 150 Israelis hostage.

The Russian Foreign Ministry called on the parties to stop all hostilities. Russian President Vladimir Putin said that a resolution to this crisis is possible only on the basis of a “two-state” formula approved by the UN Security Council, that is, the creation of an independent Palestinian state within the 1967 borders with its capital in East Jerusalem.