Israel Lashes UN Chief, as Security Council Fails to Make Headway

By: Mike Wagenheim

The chief of the United Nations is trying to sell a story, but the Israeli government isn’t buying it, and apparently, neither are the families of the hostages he sang the praises of.

U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres on Monday issued an empty demand for a “humanitarian ceasefire” in the Gaza Strip, where Israel is currently fighting a war against the Hamas terrorist group. The global body, large parts of which are dedicated to the overarching purpose of keeping the region’s Palestinians stateless and its leaders unaccountable, again expressed indignation at Israel for the perilous condition in which Gaza’s residents find themselves.

“Ground operations by the Israel Defense Forces and continued bombardment are hitting civilians, hospitals, refugee camps, mosques, churches and U.N. facilities, including shelters,” said Guterres. “No one is safe.”

He added, without missing a beat, “At the same time, Hamas and other militants use civilians as human shields and continue to launch rockets indiscriminately towards Israel.”

Unlike his Oct. 25 comments, in which Guterres seemingly justified terrorism by saying Hamas’s massacre of 1,400 Israelis and foreign nationals on Oct. 7 “didn’t happen in a vacuum” before running through a laundry list of Palestinian grievances, Guterres on Monday was more measured.

“I reiterate my utter condemnation of the abhorrent acts of terror perpetrated by Hamas on 7 October—and repeat my call for the immediate, unconditional and safe release of hostages held in Gaza” by Hamas, he said, addressing the media without taking questions. “Nothing can justify the deliberate torture, killing, injuring and kidnapping of civilians.”

However, Guterres went on to state that “Gaza is becoming a graveyard for children,” leading to harsh criticism from Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen.

“Shame on you, Antonio Guterres! More than 30 minors—among them a 9-month-old baby as well as toddlers and children who witnessed their parents being murdered in cold blood—are being held against their will in the Gaza Strip,” he tweeted. “Hamas is the problem in Gaza, not Israel’s actions to eliminate this terrorist organization,” he added.

 

‘Your humanity is broken’

Israel’s Ambassador to the United Nations Gilad Erdan renewed his call for Guterres to resign. “It has been over 30 days since the children of southern Israel were intentionally slaughtered by Hamas terrorists, but you have said NOTHING about the ‘graveyard of children’ the south of Israel has become,” tweeted Erdan.

“You have lost your moral compass and cannot remain Secretary-General for even another minute,” he added.

Guterres spent a notable portion of his speech on Monday on a meeting he had had with the families of several of the Israeli hostages being held by Hamas in Gaza.

“I heard their stories, felt their anguish and was deeply moved by their compassion,” said Guterres. “I will never relent in working for their immediate release. This is essential in itself and central to solving many other challenges.”

He singled out the words of Rachel Goldberg, the Israeli-American mother of hostage Hersh Goldberg-Polin, who gave a moving speech outside the U.N. Security Council on Oct. 25.

“When you only get outraged when one side’s babies are killed, then your moral compass is broken and your humanity is broken,” she said. Guterres seemingly presented the quote as a call to Israelis to show more compassion.

(JNS.org)