Guterres: Gaza war is intolerable; Israel is not interested in negotiating a ceasefire.
“Let’s be clear,” UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres told reporters on the eve of the 80th session of the UN General Assembly on Tuesday local time. “Given the attack that took place in Qatar, it does not seem that Israel is interested in serious negotiations for a ceasefire and the release of hostages.”
The UN Secretary-General stressed that the war in Gaza is morally, politically, and legally intolerable.
Guterres said that Qatar has announced its readiness to resume mediation. This mediation is absolutely vital, especially given the new phase of destruction in Gaza City, to achieve an immediate ceasefire, the unconditional release of hostages, and the immediate entry of humanitarian aid.
The UN Secretary-General expressed hope that Qatar’s meeting with the United States will lead to US pressure on Israel to accept negotiations seriously.
Guterres also said: “If Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu requests a meeting, I will be happy to receive him, as I would any other head of state, including US President Donald Trump.”
The UN secretary-general added: “Given the grave situation in Israel and the occupied Palestinian territories, if the Israeli prime minister requests a meeting, I will accept it.”
A UN fact-finding commission said in a report on Tuesday that Israel has committed genocide in Gaza and that Israeli officials, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, were responsible for inciting the genocide.
The UN fact-finding commission, or commission of inquiry, cited examples of the scale of killings, the blocking of aid, forced displacement, and the destruction of fertility clinics in its report, and supported similar conclusions by human rights groups and others.
Navi Pillay, the head of the UN fact-finding commission on the occupied territories and a former judge at the International Criminal Court, said: “Genocide is taking place in Gaza. Responsibility for such a crime lies with the highest levels of Israeli officials who have been waging a genocidal campaign for the past two years with the express purpose of annihilating the Palestinians in Gaza.”
Israel has refused to cooperate with the commission, and its diplomatic mission in Geneva claims that the fact-finding commission pursues a political agenda against Israel.
In response to the recent report by the fact-finding commission, the Israeli Foreign Ministry claimed that the report was “inaccurate and distorted” and that it did not accept it.