The war in the Middle East moved to New York this Tuesday. The missiles flew from one side to the other of the circular table of the United Nations (UN) Security Council.
Luckily, their projectiles only carried a verbal charge. But the words exchanged between the Israeli Foreign Minister, Eli Cohen, and his Palestinian counterpart, Riad al Maliki, were full of hatred and accusations about the responsibility of one or the other for the massacre of Israeli civilians in the attack committed by Hamas. on October 7 and the subsequent massacre of Palestinians as revenge.
The scuffle ended in a diplomatic confrontation in the house of diplomacy. Israel, based on a message from its ambassador, Gilad Erdan, requested the resignation of the Portuguese António Guterres, secretary general of the UN, for criticizing in his speech Israel’s attitude towards the occupation of territories and underlining that the brutality of the attack ” “It does not justify the collective punishment of the Palestinians.”
Gilard assured that she will not meet with him again. “The Secretary General, who shows understanding towards the campaign of mass deaths of women, children and the elderly, is not qualified to lead the UN,” she wrote on her X (Twitter) account.
The leader of the multinational institution had denounced in the Council the “clear” violations in Gaza. Condemning the terrorist attack, the secretary general said this did not come from nowhere. “Palestinians have been subjected to 56 years of suffocating occupation,” he said. And he added that Israel should allow humanitarian aid to the Palestinians.
The response in that same session was offered by Minister Cohen, indignant with Guterres. “Mr. Secretary General, what world does he live in?” He replied excitedly, showing photographs of victims of the attack and those still kidnapped. Cohen maintained that Hamas are “the new Nazis,” who are going after the Western world and that organization must be annihilated.
They were the most tense moments of a tense Security Council. “What Israel is doing is consistent with its belief that we are subhuman or human animals,” Al Maliki stressed. Given this and the lack of a solution to the historical conflict, “the inaction of the Security Council is inexcusable,” he assured.
This institution is not the right place for peace. It is not even possible to agree on a ceasefire, a request that Guterres urged, with the warning that there is a risk that this fire will spread further.
Antony Blinken, Secretary of State of the United States, a country that last week vetoed a resolution calling for the cessation of hostilities while there are hostages, presented another proposal. The secretary accepted what he called “humanitarian pauses” to get basic aid (food, water, medicine) to residents of the Gaza Strip, “without benefiting Hamas or any other terrorist group.”
Blinken, furthermore, sounded the drums of war in a scenario that was born precisely to avoid conflagrations between nations.
“The United States does not seek conflict with Iran. “We do not want this front to expand, but if Iran or its associated groups attack American personnel, make no mistake, we will defend our people and our security quickly and decisively,” he warned. “We ask that all members (of the UN) send a message of unity to any state or non-state that considers opening another front against Israel or that goes against its allies, including the United States, not to do so, not to pour more gasoline in the fire,” he stressed.
China and Russia denied their support due to the absence of a ceasefire in that draft.
