All news
Borrell accuses Israel of attacking UN system
European Foreign Minister Josep Borrell said the United Nations was under attack by the Israeli government "on all fronts." For example, he recalled that in early October, the Israeli Knesset approved a bill banning the activities of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA).
"Guterres (UN Secretary-General António Guterres. — Kommersant) is perceived as an anti-Semite, UNRWA is perceived as a terrorist, and the entire UN system is under attack." Mr. Borrell made the speech upon his arrival at the EU summit in Brussels. On October 2, the Israeli Foreign Ministry declared António Guterres persona non grata and banned him from entering the country. The decision was made because Prime Minister Guterres failed to "unconditionally condemn" the Iranian missile attack.
Josep Borrell also expressed hope that the Council of the European Union (EU) would condemn Israel's attack on the base of the Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) at the summit, which left several peacekeepers wounded. According to the UN peacekeeping mission itself, Israeli forces opened fire on its headquarters from a tank on October 13. The Israeli Foreign Ministry called the incident an accident. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that Lebanese Hezbollah was hiding behind UNIFIL and using peacekeepers as "human shields."