United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has spoken out against anti-Semitism and anti-Israel bias at the UN, calling the denial of Israel’s right to exist a modern form of anti-Jewish hatred.
Speaking at the World Jewish Congress’ Plenary Assembly in New York, Guterres said he could not control all expressions of bias against Israel at the United Nations. But he said Israel has the right to be treated like any other U.N. member state.
“A modern form of anti-Semitism is the denial of the right of the State of Israel to exist,” Guterres said. “As secretary-general of the United Nations, I can say that the State of Israel needs to be treated as any other state, with exactly the same rules.”
The United Nations has a long shown this attitude of anti-Semitism by passing resolution after resolution against the Jewish state. According to UN Watch, last year the UN General Assembly condemned Israel 20 times in 2016, compared to six condemnations for the rest of the world combined. And when you look at all that is happening in the world, with all the human rights abuses around the world, for Israel to be singled out in this way points only to an anti-Semitic attitude held by too many of the UN’s member states.
Guterres emphasised that treating Israel fairly doesn’t mean he will agree with everything the Israeli government does, just as everyone has different political views, but he said he would defend “the absolutely undeniable right of Israel to exist and to live in peace and security with its neighbours.”
You can watch his full speech in the video below:
