UN Secretary-General António Guterres on Wednesday announced the activation of Article 99 of the UN Charter, for the first time since taking office and the first since 1989, when it was last invoked. It is a clause that states that "the Secretary-General may bring to the attention of the Security Council any issue which in his view threatens peace and security in the world." In light of the clause's operation, the UN Security Council will convene for a special session this Friday afternoon (Israel time).
For the first time since 1989: UN secretary-general invokes rare clause and Security Council convenes to debate war // Reuters
"The humanitarian system in Gaza is at grave risk, and I call on the Security Council to intervene to prevent a catastrophe and call for a humanitarian ceasefire," the secretary-general tweeted. Invoking the rare clause joins a series of controversial measures by Guterres since the start of the war in Gaza. He spoke after the war began at a Security Council meeting and said that "the Hamas attack did not take place in a vacuum."
IN ADDITION, HE DELAYED CONDEMNING HAMAS' CRIMES AGAINST ISRAELINESS, AND UN WOMEN, UNDER HIM, ADDRESSED THESE EVENTS ONLY TWO MONTHS LATER. He also claimed that more innocents were killed in Gaza than any other war during his time as secretary-general, a claim that drew criticism for ignoring other wars around the world, such as the one still taking place in Ukraine.
One of the photos that appeared in the investigation into the October 7 massacre, photo: AP
Israel's ambassador to the UN, Gilad Erdan, attacked Guterres and demanded that he resign in light of his statements and biased activity against Israel. "The secretary-general has reached a new moral low. He remembers to invoke a rare clause, only when it allows him to pressure Israel, which is fighting Nazi Hamas terrorists. This is yet another proof of the secretary-general's moral distortion and his bias against Israel," Erdan said.
He continued: "Instead of the secretary-general explicitly pointing out Hamas' responsibility for the situation and calling on the terrorists' leaders to turn themselves in and return the hostages, thereby ending the war, the secretary-general chooses to continue playing into the hands of Hamas. The UN needs a secretary-general who backs the war on terror, not a secretary-general who acts according to the script written by Hamas."
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