Pavlos Xanthoulis
This might be one of the harshest criticisms ever directed at United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres. It’s not just the fact that Israel declared him a "persona non grata," banning him from the country, but also the sharp language used by Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz against the UN chief. According to Israel, Guterres' offense was that, in his first statement following Iran’s heinous attack on Israel, he failed to mention Tehran and thus didn’t condemn the Iranian regime. Instead, he merely called for a ceasefire.
Indeed, Guterres made a significant misstep, but the reaction was monumental: "Anyone who cannot unequivocally condemn Iran’s heinous attack on Israel does not deserve to set foot on Israeli soil," said Israel’s Foreign Minister. He further accused Guterres of being "an anti-Israel Secretary-General who supports terrorists, rapists, and murderers." Katz went on to assert that "this is a Secretary-General who has yet to condemn the massacre and sexual atrocities committed by Hamas murderers on October 7, nor has he led any effort to have Hamas declared a terrorist organization. A Secretary-General who supports terrorists, rapists, and murderers from Hamas, Hezbollah, the Houthis, and now Iran will go down in UN history as a stain."
It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that Israel Katz "steamrolled" over the UN Secretary-General, who, a mere 24 hours later, was forced to adjust his stance. Guterres included Tehran in his subsequent condemnations, stating, "I strongly condemn, once again, the mass missile attack by Iran against Israel." Speaking before the Security Council, the UN chief added that these Iranian attacks "paradoxically do not appear to support the Palestinian cause, nor alleviate their suffering." At the same time, despite adjusting his position in line with Israeli demands, Guterres, likely for the sake of maintaining his own image, called Israel’s Gaza offensive "the deadliest and most destructive military operation during my time as Secretary-General."
"Anyone who cannot unequivocally condemn Iran’s heinous attack on Israel does not deserve to set foot on Israeli soil," -Israel Katz, Israel’s Foreign Minister.
Regardless of the specifics of the Israel-Guterres conflict, two conclusions are clear: First, Israel does not hesitate to level anyone who doesn’t align with its demands, using the same intensity it applies in Gaza—without discrimination, even if that person is the UN Secretary-General.
Second, António Guterres, prone to mistakes, has in this case demonstrated a quick tendency to shift and adjust his stance, partially satisfying Israel’s demands. However, this is unlikely to erase the "stain" he has been marked with, and may only spread it further onto other parts of his political standing.
In any case, Israel’s leadership will continue to be what it is, employing the same tactics of eliminating those who do not adopt its positions or support its methods. It fails to distinguish between the murderous Iranian regime and the terrorist-brutal attacks by Hezbollah and Hamas, and the international calls for a ceasefire and an end to Israel’s horrific assaults on Gaza. These assaults have surpassed the boundaries of legitimate self-defense, resulting in the deaths of thousands of civilians, including children. Meanwhile, António Guterres will likely continue to adapt his stance with flexibility until his term concludes on December 31, 2026. His actions suggest that the UN Secretary-General can be "politically small" and pliable when dealing with the powerful, and "politically large" when interacting with the powerless, who rely on the convening of a trilateral meeting or a new negotiation process—where his only real commitment seems to be squaring the circle, retreating from his own mandate and Security Council resolutions, without ever truly correcting course or feeling stained by his actions.
[This op-ed was translated from its Greek original]
