UN Chief Guterres Opens General Assembly With Strong Rebuke of Israel

UN Secretary-General António Guterres opened the annual UN General Assembly in New York with a sharp condemnation of Israel's actions in the Gaza war and the West Bank. Speaking for the last time before his term ends in December, Guterres stated that the "deplorable" Hamas attacks of October 7th were followed by an assault on Palestinians in Gaza involving destruction and death on a scale he had not witnessed in his tenure.

He further accused Israel of "suspected ethnic cleansing" in the West Bank, citing escalating violence, displacement, and settlement expansion that he argued were destroying the path to peace. Guterres emphasized the need to prevent the two-state solution from disappearing and called for continued monitoring of the "devastating situation" in the occupied Palestinian territories.

The Secretary-General also referenced the ongoing case at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) alleging genocide against Palestinians in Gaza. He recalled an advisory opinion from the previous year, stressing that the ICJ clarified the UN's mandate in Gaza and the need to protect its staff and humanitarian workers. Guterres concluded by urging all parties to comply with international law and the court's orders.