Affront to Israel
Guterres takes unusual step because of Gaza war
December 7, 2023, 2:52 a.m
Israel’s government is responding to demands from the USA: More fuel should come to the Gaza Strip. Meanwhile, the Secretary General of the United Nations is taking extraordinary measures to put pressure on Israel.
In view of the suffering of the civilian population, international criticism of the Israeli army’s actions in the Gaza Strip is growing. UN Secretary-General António Guterres has turned to the Security Council to put the war in the Middle East on the agenda – a move that is perceived as a further affront in Israel. Under pressure from the USA, at least more fuel should now be able to be delivered to the Gaza Strip.
Guterres urged the UN Security Council to work to avert a humanitarian catastrophe in the Gaza Strip – an unusual move. In a letter to the Security Council, the UN chief invoked Article 99 of the UN Charter for the first time since taking office in 2017. This allows the Secretary General to bring to the attention of the Security Council “any matter which, in his opinion, may jeopardize the guarantee of international peace and security” and, according to the UN, has not been used for decades.
“I call on members of the Security Council to push to prevent a humanitarian catastrophe,” the letter said. “I repeat my call for a humanitarian ceasefire to be declared. This is urgent. The civilian population must be spared greater suffering.”
The UN chief said that in view of the great loss of life in the Gaza Strip and Israel within a comparatively short period of time, he decided to invoke Article 99 of the UN Charter, the United Nations said. This has only happened very rarely in the history of the UN. Invoking Article 99 has no direct consequences; symbolically, the Secretary General gives his appeal greater significance. According to a spokesman for Guterres, it is expected that the Security Council will meet on the issue this week and that Guterres will also be there.
Normally, the members of the Security Council decide for themselves which issues they perceive as threats to world peace and therefore want to put on the agenda. The most powerful UN body has so far passed a resolution on the Gaza war, but otherwise has often appeared divided.
Israel: Call for ceasefire plays into Hamas’ hands
Israel’s foreign minister sharply criticized Guterre’s move. “His request to activate Article 99 and call for a ceasefire in Gaza constitutes support for the terrorist organization Hamas,” Eli Cohen wrote on X. “Anyone who supports world peace must support the liberation of Gaza from Hamas.” Guterre’s term in office endangers world peace. The relationship between Israel and the United Nations was already very strained. The UN bodies reflect the attitude of the world’s countries, the majority of which are critical or even hostile towards Israel.
The USA is on Israel’s side, but has recently expressed increasing concern about developments in the Gaza Strip and called for more aid to be allowed. The government is now at least partially complying with this request: in the evening, the Security Cabinet agreed to a recommendation from the War Cabinet to allow more fuel deliveries to the south of the Gaza Strip, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said. An increase in the minimum permitted amount is necessary “to prevent a humanitarian collapse and the outbreak of epidemics,” it said.
It is unclear exactly how much the amount of fuel that can be brought into the Gaza Strip each day should be increased. According to Netanyahu’s office, the minimum quantity will be determined from time to time by the war cabinet, taking into account the humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip. Israel fears that fuel will be misused by Hamas, including to fire rockets.