The arrest warrant issued against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over the war in Gaza does not bar UN officials from meeting with him in the course of their work, the UN said Thursday, as quoted by the AFP news agency.
UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres and Netanyahu have not spoken since the war started following the Hamas attack against Israel on October 7, 2023, although there have been contacts with Netanyahu by UN officials in the region.
After the warrants issued Thursday by the International Criminal Court against Netanyahu, former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant and Hamas' military chief Mohammed Deif, UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said UN policy on contacts with people facing arrest warrants dates back to a document issued in 2013.
"The rule is that there should not be any contacts between UN officials and individuals subject to arrest warrants," Dujarric said.
But limited contacts are allowed "to address fundamental issues, operational issues, and our ability to carry out our mandates," he added.
The comments do not necessarily mean a meeting between Netanyahu and Guterres is being considered, as the UN chief was last month declared persona non grata by then-Foreign Minister Israel Katz due to his anti-Israel bias.
Guterres has not stopped short of criticizing Israel since the start of the war in Gaza. In October of last year, the UN Secretary-General said that Hamas’ attack on Israel on October 7 “did not happen in a vacuum” and appeared to blame Israel for the attack.
After his remarks were widely condemned, the UN chief claimed his comments were misinterpreted and that he had indeed condemned Hamas.
Later, he mentioned the sexual crimes committed by Hamas in its October 7 attack in Israel in the same breath as “reports of sexual violence against Palestinian detainees”.
Subsequently, Guterres appeared to equate between Hamas’ October 7 attack on Israel and the humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip.
In a post on social media, Guterres wrote, “Nothing can justify the 7 Oct terror attacks by Hamas” but then added, “Nothing can justify the collective punishment of the Palestinian people.”
He then added, “It’s high time for a humanitarian ceasefire, the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages and unimpeded humanitarian access throughout Gaza.”