Israel demands UN Secretary General's resignation after his remarks on Gaza war

Israel has reacted angrily to the UN Secretary-General's comments on the war in Gaza made at a Security Council meeting.

On Tuesday, Antonio Guterres said he unequivocally condemned the deadly Hamas attacks on Israel two weeks ago, but he said it was important to recognize that the attacks "did not take place in a vacuum."

Israeli Ambassador Gilad Erdan accused the Secretary General of supporting terrorism, demanding his immediate resignation.

Later, Erdan said that Israel would refuse to issue visas to UN representatives.

Guterres denied the accusations against him.

"I am shocked by the distortions of some of my statements... It is as if I am justifying Hamas' terrorist acts. This is not true. It was the opposite," he told reporters, without directly naming Israel.

Speaking at a UN Security Council meeting in New York on Tuesday, Guterres said the situation in the Middle East was becoming more difficult by the hour and called on all sides to respect and protect civilians.

"I unequivocally condemned the horrific and unprecedented terrorist acts committed by Hamas in Israel on October 7. Nothing can justify the deliberate killing, wounding and abduction of civilians, as well as the firing of rockets at civilian targets," he said.

At the same time, Guterres noted: "It is also important to recognize that Hamas' attacks did not take place in a vacuum. The Palestinian people have been subjected to a suffocating occupation for 56 years," he added.

He said that the Palestinians "have seen their land inexorably swallowed up by settlements and suffered violence; they have seen their economy suffocate; they have seen people flee and their homes destroyed."

Guterres also said he was deeply concerned about the "clear violations of international humanitarian law that we are seeing in Gaza" and expressed alarm at the continuous Israeli bombardment, as well as the level of civilian casualties and "massive destruction of neighborhoods."

He explained his statement yesterday as follows: "I spoke about the suffering of the Palestinian people. And I clearly stated, and I quote: "But the suffering of the Palestinian people cannot justify the horrific attacks by Hamas."

In his speech to the Security Council, Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen criticized Guterres, asking him: "What kind of world do you live in?"

Cohen said that the killing of 1,400 men, women and children by Hamas militants who infiltrated Israel is a massacre that "will go down in history as more brutal" than the killings committed by the ISIS group.

"Hamas is the new Nazis," Cohen said. "Just as the civilized world united to defeat the Nazis to defeat ISIS, so the civilized world must unite and support Israel to defeat Hamas.

Speaking about the UN calls for proportionality and a ceasefire, he said: "Tell me, what is a proportionate response to the killing of babies, to the rape of women and their burning, to the beheading of a child? How can you agree to a ceasefire with someone who has sworn to kill and end your own existence?"

Cohen later wrote on the social network X: "I will not meet with the UN Secretary General. After the October 7 massacre, there is no room for a balanced approach."

According to the Israeli ambassador to the UN, Guterres proved that he is "completely out of touch with the real situation in our region."

"His statement that 'Hamas attacks did not take place in a vacuum' demonstrates an 'understanding' of terrorism and murder. This is truly incomprehensible. It is very sad that the head of an organization that emerged after the Holocaust holds such horrific views. It's a tragedy!" – said Israeli Ambassador Gilad Erdan.

He informed the UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs Martin Griffiths that he had been denied an Israeli visa.

"He will not be able to come to this region. Their agencies constantly need to bring new people here, especially at a time like this. They will be denied," he said.

British government official Robert Jenrick said that the UN chief was wrong and should retract his comments.

"No one, intentionally or not, should say that there is any justification for Hamas attacks," he said in an interview with ITV.

Background. Earlier it was reported that Israel expressed its readiness to complete the ground operation in the Gaza Strip if Hamas releases the hostages and surrenders. There are 212 civilians in the captivity of the Palestinian military.