Israel will consider whether to approve entry requests submitted by United Nations employees, the Israeli Broadcasting Authority reported on Wednesday.
Anadolu news agency quoted the Authority as saying, “Since the beginning of the conflict, there has been an increased demand from the UN staff to come to the region,” adding:
“Israeli anger over the words of the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and prior to that, the meeting between the UN Special Envoy to the Middle East Tor Wensland and the Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, has led Israel to consider this negatively.”
Anadolu reported that, as of now, there has not been an official stance on restricting the entry of UN staff by the Israeli authorities.
🎥 #UNSC UPDATE
UN-SECRETARY GENERAL ANTONIO GUTERRES: It is important to also recognize the attacks by #Hamas did not happen in a vacuum.
FOLLOW OUR LIVE BLOG: https://t.co/qtUvnLqnlR pic.twitter.com/5uHhpGZG8V
— The Palestine Chronicle (@PalestineChron) October 24, 2023
On Tuesday, Israeli diplomats called for the resignation of UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, after he told the Security Council that the Hamas attack “did not happen in a vacuum” and noted that the Palestinians had been “subjected to 56 years of suffocating occupation.”
US 'Negative Position' at UNSC Derails Peace in #Gaza: #Russian Ambassador https://t.co/j6vpZm9UJV
— The Palestine Chronicle (@PalestineChron) October 25, 2023
Israel’s ambassador to the UN, Gilad Erdan, accused Guterres of expressing “an understanding for terrorism and murder” and “compassion for the most terrible atrocities committed against the citizens of Israel and the Jewish people.”
Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen announced he would boycott meetings with Guterres again, adding that “after October 7th there is no room for a balanced approach. Hamas must be wiped out from the world!”
(The Palestine Chronicle)
