UN Invokes Article 99, Israel Says Guterres Supports Hamas
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Alaina
- . December 7, 2023
- . Update: December 7, 2023 6:23 pm
Israel’s Foreign Minister Eli Cohen believes Antonio Guterres is a danger to world peace because the UN Secretary-General invoked Article 99 of the UN’s Charter. Guterres welded his executive power as head of the UN body to bring to the attention of the Security Council, in this case the situation in Gaza.
It is to be seen what action the UNSC will take as it is yet to adopt a resolution calling for ceasefire. The US has vetoed a resolution and Russia blocked another. Guterres has been calling for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire since October 18.
This time, he called out the Security Council’s inaction and highlighted the dire situation in Gaza, hundreds of civilians being killed per day, with majority being children and women. Guterres said the Security Council’s continue lack of act left him no choice but to invoke Article 99. He warned that the public order in Gaza could soon break amid the complete collapse of the humanitarian system.
What is Article 99?
The UN chief has utilized the UN Charter Article 99 for the first time since he took up the top position in 2017. Stephane Dujarric, UN spokesperson, said Guterres took this step because of the scale of the loss of human life in Gaza and Israel in such a short amount of time. He described the use of Article 99 as a dramatic constitutional move.
Dujarric explained that the UN Secretary-General hoped this would put more pressure on the Security Council, and the international community at large, to demand a ceasefire between the warring parties. “I think it’s arguably the most important invocation, in my opinion, the most powerful tool that the Secretary-General has.”
However, Israel criticized this. Cohen said Guterres’s decision constitutes support of the Hamas terrorist organization and an endorsement of the murder of the elderly, the abduction of babies, and the rape of women. “Anyone who supports world peace must support the liberation of Gaza from Hamas.”
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Guterres Decries Human Suffering, Killings
In his letter to the Security Council, Guterres said the more than eight weeks of fighting overall has created appalling human suffering, physical destruction and collective trauma across Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territory.
“Accounts of sexual violence during these attacks are appalling. Around 80 percent of Gazans are displaced, over 1.1 million seeking refuge in UN Palestine refugee agency shelters. Hospitals have turned into battlegrounds, amid the constant bombardment of all parts of Gaza and without shelter or the essentials to survive, I expect public order to completely break down soon.”
Guterres said the international community has a responsibility to use all its influence to prevent further escalation and end the crisis.
