Guterres urges Israel and Hamas to close the ceasefire and hopes for “irreversible” steps towards a Palestinian state

Vindicates multilateralism by exposing the priorities of the UN: “Global problems demand global solutions”

The Secretary General of the UN, António Guterres, expressed this Wednesday his “hope” for the apparent rapprochements between Israel and Hamas to seal a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, within a new horizon in which he has asked whether the Israeli Government will continue to “deny the rights and dignity of the Palestinian people” or there will be some type of “irreversible action” for a two-state solution.

Guterres has presented before the United Nations General Assembly the organization’s priorities for the coming months, taking into account that political “actions or inactions” have “opened a modern Pandora’s box of evils” that include a “raging climate crisis.” , technology “out of control” and an escalation of conflicts in various parts of the world.

The head of the UN believes that the open negotiations on Gaza represent, like the reduction of tensions in Lebanon, a “sign of hope”, but has insisted on the need for an “immediate” halt to the conflict. fire, the hostages are freed and humanitarian aid reaches the Gazan population.

Thus, although “nothing can justify the terrorist attacks by Hamas on October 7” in 2023, Guterres considers equally unjustifiable “the dramatic levels of death and destruction” that the Strip is now suffering, within a global context in which “impunity” “has become “endemic” despite the fact that “serious” violations of International Law are being perpetrated.

The Middle East, in general, is being “redefined”, in the words of Guterres, who has wondered if there will be some type of “irreversible action” towards the creation of the Palestinian State or Israel will continue to opt for annexation, “the denial of human rights”. and dignity of the Palestinian people and the destruction of any opportunity to achieve sustainable peace” in the area.

In Syria, the doubt is, according to Guterres, whether the new authorities will be able to draw “an inclusive, free and peaceful future” or, instead, they will opt for “fragmentation”, at the cost of cutting the rights of minorities. and vulnerable groups such as women and girls.

“IT’S NOT ABOUT REINVENTING THE WHEEL”

A few days before Republican Donald Trump returns to the White House, Guterres has avoided any express allusion to the United States but has wanted to vindicate multilateralism, advocating to accelerate compliance with common commitments such as the Sustainable Development Goals or the Paris Agreement. to cut emissions and combat climate change.

“Global problems demand global solutions. The more the UN does to address the world’s great challenges, the less individual countries will have to do on their own,” he argued from the lectern of the Assembly. “It is not about reinventing the wheel, (but about) the wheel turning,” he declared.

Much of his speech has been dedicated to climate change, facing a year in which the world should theoretically reach the peak of polluting emissions before beginning to reduce them. In this sense, he asked “who pays the price of climate destruction around the world” and recalled that it is not exactly the most polluting industry, but rather the average citizen, especially the most “vulnerable.”

“Look what is happening in the hills of Los Angeles. The place that hosts movies about disasters has become the scene of a disaster,” he lamented, alluding to the fires that are ravaging part of Southern California and that have already left at least 25 dead.