The Israeli Foreign Ministry accused Guterres of not clearly condemning Iran after its massive rocket attack on Israel. Also, as the Foreign Ministry pointed out, the UN Secretary General did not contribute to the recognition of Hamas as a terrorist organisation.
UN Secretary General António Gutterish has been declared persona non grata in Israel, he is banned from entering the country, the decision was made by the Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz.
Katz said:
Anyone who cannot unequivocally condemn Iran’s heinous attack on Israel, as nearly all the countries of the world have done, does not deserve to set foot on Israeli soi. Israel will continue to defend its citizens and uphold its national dignity, with or without Antonio Guterres.
He accused the UN Secretary General of supporting Hamas, Hezbollah, the Yemeni Houthis, as well as Iran.
In the evening of October 1, Iran launched a massive missile strike on Israel. According to the Jerusalem Post, about 500 missiles were fired. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) called the attack a response to the killing of Lebanese Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah and IRGC Brigadier General Abbas Nilforoushan, who were killed in an attack on the group’s headquarters on September 27.
IDF spokesman Daniel Hagari said some of the rockets were shot down, but “there were also hits.” Some of them reached cities – published footage shows intercepts as well as falling debris. According to Ynet, a direct hit was recorded on a building in northern Tel Aviv, while explosions were reported from the Negev and Sharon areas.
António Guterres issued a brief statement on Tuesday, referring only to “the latest attacks in the Middle East” and condemning the conflict “with escalation after escalation.”
