The office of U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres told JNS that the global body head has no oversight over a U.N. commission accusing Israel of “genocidal acts.”
“The Independent International Commission of Inquiry is an independent body mandated by the Human Rights Council, over which the secretary-general has no authority,” Stéphane Dujarric, spokesman to Guterres, told JNS.
The U.N. secretary-general has drawn ire from critics for refusing to label Israel’s prosecution of the war a “genocide.” His office has said repeatedly that “genocide” is a legal term and not an opinion for Guterres to express.
Israel has rejected the commission’s report, which also accused Israel of destroying women’s health-care facilities and using sexual violence as a war strategy.
“The secretary-general has spoken out repeatedly at the horrors we have seen in this conflict,” Dujarric said. “He continues to be deeply alarmed by the humanitarian situation in Gaza and reiterates his call for all parties to respect international humanitarian law and international human rights law. He underlines that there needs to be accountability.”
Jerusalem’s permanent mission to the United Nations in Geneva called the allegations by the commission unfounded, biased and lacking credibility.
