Israel declares UN director ‘persona non grata’

(MENAFN) Israel has officially declared UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres persona non grata following his calls for a ceasefire in response to Iran’s missile attacks on the country. The statement came after the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) in Iran carried out multiple rocket attacks, claiming they were retaliatory to recent Israeli operations that resulted in the deaths of key Hamas and Hezbollah figures, as well as an Iranian general in Lebanon .

Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz announced the decision on Case X, criticizing Guterres for failing to condemn what he described as Iran’s “disgusting attack.” Katz stated: “Anyone who cannot unequivocally condemn Iran’s heinous attack on Israel, as almost every country in the world has done, does not deserve to set foot on Israeli soil.” He also accused Guterres of failing to condemn the atrocities committed by Hamas on October 7 and failing to classify the group as a terrorist organization.

In his remarks, Katz expressed that Guterres will be remembered as a “stain on the history of the United Nations” for allegedly supporting terrorist organizations including Hamas, Hezbollah and the Houthis. This escalation of rhetoric follows Guterres’ own comments on the conflict, in which he expressed grave concern about rising tensions in Lebanon and called for an immediate ceasefire, stressing that “this must end” and emphasizing the need to de-escalate violence in the region.

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