Israel on Wednesday stated it would deny visas to United Nations officials “to train them a lesson,” following current feedback by the U.N. chief concerning the Israel-Hamas conflict.
On Tuesday, U.N. Secretary-Basic António Guterres angered Israeli officials over his remarks concerning the deepening humanitarian crisis within the Gaza Strip following the lethal attack on Israel earlier this month.
Addressing the U.N. Safety Council in New York, Guterres stated that whereas he “unequivocally” condemned “the horrifying and unprecedented … acts of terror by Hamas in Israel,” it was additionally necessary to acknowledge these assaults “did not happen in a vacuum.”
“The Palestinian folks have been subjected to 56 years of suffocating occupation,” Guterres continued. “They’ve seen their land steadily devoured by settlements and stricken by violence; their economic system stifled; their folks displaced and their houses demolished. Their hopes for a political resolution to their plight have been vanishing.”
Whereas nothing can justify Hamas’ “appalling assaults,” that violence can also’t “justify the collective punishment of the Palestinian folks,” he stated, whereas repeating requires a cease-fire.
“The relentless bombardment of Gaza by Israeli forces, the extent of civilian casualties, and the wholesale destruction of neighborhoods proceed to mount and are deeply alarming,” Guterres stated.
Guterres’ remarks have been fiercely criticized by Israeli officials, prompting Gilad Erdan, Israel’s ambassador to the U.N., to name for the U.N. chief’s resignation, saying he was “tolerating” and “justifying” terrorism.
Talking on Israeli Military Radio early on Wednesday, Erdan stated due to the remarks, “we are going to refuse to difficulty visas to U.N. representatives.”
“We have now already refused a visa for undersecretary-general for humanitarian affairs, Martin Griffiths,” he stated. “The time has come to train them a lesson.”
