France slams 'Israel's' ban on UN chief as 'unjustified'
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Paris expresses its strong support and confidence in Antonio Guterres, emphasizing that the United Nations plays a crucial role in maintaining regional stability.
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View of the main entrance of the "Palais des Nations" building which houses the United Nations Offices in Geneva (AFP)
France criticized "Israel's" decision to label UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres as "persona non grata," calling it "unjustified".
In a statement, the French Foreign Ministry expressed regret, stating, "France regrets the unjustified, serious, and counter-productive decision taken by Israel to declare the secretary general of the United Nations, Antonio Guterres, persona non grata."
Paris expressed its strong support and confidence in Antonio Guterres, emphasizing that the United Nations plays a crucial role in maintaining regional stability.
This comes shortly after the Israeli government took the unprecedented step of barring Guterres from entering "Israel" following his perceived failure to "unequivocally condemn" what it referred to as "serious aggression" from Iran.
On Tuesday night, Iran launched Operation True Promise 2 in response to the assassinations of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh, Hezbollah Secretary-General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, and Iranian IRGC General Abbas Nilforoushian.
Not an isolated incident
The United States has already condemned the action taken by its ally, while EU foreign affairs chief Josep Borrell also came to Guterres' defense during a speech in Pontevedra, Spain. He stated that "attacks on the UN secretary-general" must be rejected.
"Yes everything started with the terrorist attacks by Hamas that we condemn, but these attacks, as the UN secretary-general has said, didn't come from nowhere," Borrell stressed.
EU foreign affairs chief described the attacks as just another episode in a long-running story that had begun earlier. He stressed that expressing a viewpoint contrary to that of a government should not lead to accusations of anti-Semitism, warning that such a term should not be used lightly as it is too serious and painful.
Borrell also acknowledged "Israel's right to defend itself" but emphasized that this right, like all rights, has its limitations.
"The question that we, Europeans, do not want to ask ourselves, or at least do not want to answer, is whether these limits have been reached. My answer is yes, unfortunately," he concluded.
'Israel' designating Guterres persona non grata is attack on UN staff: UN
The Israeli occupation declaring United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres "persona non grata" is a "political statement" as part of a broader trend of attacks on UN personnel by the Israeli entity, UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said on Wednesday.
Speaking at a press briefing, Dujarric expressed the UN's concern over the Israeli decision. "We saw this announcement this morning, which we see as a political statement by the foreign minister and just one more attack, so to speak, on UN staff that we've seen from the government of Israel," he said.
Despite the Israeli occupation's declaration, Dujarric reaffirmed that the UN would continue its operational and other level contacts with "Israel", emphasizing that the organization would not let this decision hinder its diplomatic or humanitarian efforts.
In a related context, the United Nations voiced deep concern on Monday over the deteriorating situation in Lebanon as Israeli attacks intensify, underscoring its opposition to "Israel's" reported plans for a ground invasion of the country.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres “remains deeply concerned about the humanitarian consequences of the events that are unfolding in Lebanon," UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said during a press briefing.
Dujarric emphasized Guterres' call for all parties to exercise maximum restraint and to pursue de-escalation while highlighting the importance of enforcing UN Security Council Resolution 1701.
