Antonio Guterres believes that divisions within the UN Security Council are “dangerous”.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has warned that the world is entering an “age of chaos” as the UN Security Council remains sharply divided over Israel’s war on Gaza.
Guterres said he was “particularly alarmed” after Israel announced plans last week to focus its military attack in Gaza on the southern town of Rafah, where more than a million people have sought refuge .
“Such action would exponentially worsen what is already a humanitarian nightmare with incalculable regional consequences,” he told the United Nations General Assembly on Wednesday.
“It is time for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire and the unconditional release of all hostages,” he added.
Israeli forces launched a devastating attack on Gaza in a bid to “destroy” Hamas in response to the Palestinian group’s attack on southern Israel on October 7. At least 1,139 people were killed in the Hamas attack, according to an Tel Aviv Tribune tally based on official sources. Israeli figures.
Since then, Israel has relentlessly bombed the territory and launched a ground invasion, leaving much of Gaza in ruins. At least 27,708 people were killed in the Israeli attack, according to Palestinian authorities in Gaza, and more than 80 percent of the population was displaced.
In his speech on Wednesday, Guterres also called for reforms to the Security Council, which has failed to agree on a common position on the war in Gaza despite calls from several United Nations agencies for an urgent ceasefire.
“The United Nations Security Council – the main platform for global peace issues – is deadlocked due to geopolitical fissures,” he said.
“This is not the first time the Council has been divided – but it is the worst. The current dysfunction is deeper and more dangerous.”
Guterres added that unlike the Cold War, where “well-established mechanisms helped manage relations between superpowers,” these mechanisms have disappeared “in today’s multipolar world.”
“Our world is entering an era of chaos… a dangerous and unpredictable melee with impunity,” he warned.
The UN chief urged world leaders to seize the opportunity of the “Future Summit”, to be held in September in New York on the sidelines of the Annual General Assembly, to “shape multilateralism for years to come.” come “.
He also mentioned that as conflicts intensify around the world and humanitarian needs reach “an unprecedented level,” funding is “not keeping pace.”