UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres’ comments opening a special session of the UN Security Council were met with shock and disappointment by Israel’s delegation to the global body.
Guterres made only perfunctory condemnations of the Hamas attack, while taking the opportunity to repeat what can only be called Hamas propaganda.
“It is important to also recognize the attacks by Hamas did not happen in a vacuum,” he said.
“The Palestinian people have been subjected to 56 years of suffocating occupation. They have seen their land steadily devoured by settlements and plagued by violence; their economy stifled; their people displaced and their homes demolished. Their hopes for a political solution to their plight have been vanishing.”
Guterres did acknowledge, however, that family members of the more than 200 Israeli hostages held by Hamas in Gaza were in attendance and called for the release of all of the hostages.
Israel’s Ambassador to the UN Gilad Erdan wasted no time in criticizing the Guterres’ words.
Erdan posted a statement on the X social media platform, saying, “The shocking speech by the UN Secretary-General at the Security Council meeting, while rockets are being fired at all of Israel, proved conclusively, beyond any doubt, that the Secretary-General is completely disconnected from the reality in our region and that he views the massacre committed by Nazi Hamas terrorists in a distorted and immoral manner.”
The Secretary General’s statement that, “the attacks by Hamas did not happen in a vacuum,” said Ambassador Erdan, “expressed an understanding for terrorism and murder. It’s really unfathomable. It’s truly sad that the head of an organization that arose after the Holocaust holds such horrible views. A tragedy!”
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken minced no words in slamming the massacres, and placing the blame squarely where it belonged.
“We should all condemn the attack by Hamas on October 7 absolutely without reservations. No country here in this forum can be forgiving of what happened,” Blinken said.
Most Arab nations walked out during his remarks, including Saudi Arabia. The representatives of Egypt and the United Arab Emirates remained. Both nations have diplomatic ties with the Jewish State.
