Israel declared UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres “persona non grata” on Wednesday, criticising him for not explicitly condemning Iran’s missile attack on Israel.
Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz stated, “Anyone who cannot unequivocally condemn Iran’s heinous attack on Israel does not deserve to step foot on Israeli soil.”
Katz also accused Guterres of supporting terrorist groups such as Hamas, Hezbollah, and the Houthis, and labeled Iran as the “mothership of global terror.”
Following Iran’s missile strike on Tuesday, Guterres condemned the broadening conflict in the Middle East and called for an immediate ceasefire.
However, Israel has been critical of the UN’s stance, particularly after the October 7 Hamas attacks, and has expressed increasing frustration with Guterres’s repeated calls for a ceasefire in Gaza and Lebanon.
