The UN Security Council has affirmed its full support for Secretary-General Antonio Guterres after Israel banned the UN chief from entering the country.
In several messages Thursday almost certainly aimed at Israel, the 15-member council “underscored that any decision not to engage with the UN secretary-general or the United Nations is counterproductive, especially in the context of escalating tensions in the Middle East.”
The UN's most powerful body also “underscored the need for all member states to have a productive and effective relationship with the secretary-general and to refrain from any actions that undermine his work and that of his office.”
Switzerland’s UN Ambassador Pascale Baeriswyl, the current council president, read the statement to reporters late Thursday.
Israel’s Foreign Minister Israel Katz announced Wednesday that Guterres is “persona non grata” — not welcome — in the country, accusing the secretary-general of being biased against Israel.
