Daniel Lone/EPA
The Secretary-General of the United Nations, António Guterres
The Israeli mission to the United Nations declared that it will no longer maintain any contact with Guterres’ office while he remains in office.
Israel announced that it will sever all contacts with the office of United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres after the country was included on a UN list related to allegations of sexual violence in conflict zones.
The decision was communicated by the Israeli ambassador to the United Nations, Danny Danon, who accused Guterres and his team of spreading “lies” about Israel.
“We are fed up with this secretary general”, Danon on his social networks.
At issue is the UN Secretary-General’s annual report on sexual violence in the context of armed conflict, which should be published soon. According to the United Nations, there is “credible information” about acts of sexual violence committed by Israeli security forces against Palestinians in prisons and other detention centers.
The UN also highlighted, however, that its inspectors did not have access to these facilities, cited by .
Danny Danon rejected the accusations, calling Israel’s inclusion on the list “scandalous”. And he said that placing Israel alongside Hamas — also mentioned in the report due to allegations of sexual violence during the attack on October 7, 2023 and against hostages — is “unacceptable”.
According to Danon, Israel invited UN representatives to the country to verify the accusations, but they chose not to do so.
The Israeli reaction was accompanied by harsh criticism from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Spokesman Oren Marmorstein accused the UN of being a “politicized and corrupt” organization, claiming that it has abandoned its founding principles and aims to systematically target Israel. The Israeli mission to the United Nations declared that it will no longer maintain any contact with Guterres’ office while he remains in office.
On the UN side, the secretary-general’s spokesman, Stéphane Dujarric, confirmed that the office was aware of the Israeli statements, but stated that “the secretary-general’s door remains open”.
António Guterres’ term at the helm of the United Nations ends on December 31st.
Tensions between Israel and the UN have worsened since the 2023 Hamas attack that triggered the war in Gaza. Israel has accused the organization’s officials of bias, especially after criticism of the bombings in Gaza.
In 2024, Guterres was even declared “persona non grata” by Israel.
