Israel Cuts Contact with UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres Over Blacklist Dispute
Israel has announced it is severing all contact with United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres. The move comes in response to Israel’s inclusion on a UN blacklist over alleged sexual violence in conflict zones.
Israeli authorities condemned the blacklist as ‘outrageous’, particularly as Israel was listed alongside Hamas. ‘We are done with this Secretary-General,’ said Israel’s UN ambassador, Danny Danon, in a video statement posted on social media platform X, according to AFP on Friday, 29 May 2026.
‘The decision to include Israel on the blacklist and accuse us of using sexual violence as a weapon of war is outrageous,’ Danon stated, referring to a report due to be released by the UN Secretary-General’s office this year. ‘The Secretary-General and his team continue to spread lies against Israel. Placing us alongside terrorist group Hamas on the same list is unacceptable,’ he added.
The Israeli Foreign Ministry described the inclusion on the UN’s sexual violence blacklist as ‘shameful and unreasonable’. ‘This step further demonstrates the true nature of the UN: a politicised and corrupt organisation that has abandoned its founding principles and systematically targeted Israel as its primary mission,’ said Foreign Ministry spokesperson Oren Marmorstein.
Israel’s UN mission stated in a separate statement that it would not engage with the Secretary-General’s office for the remainder of Guterres’s term, which ends on 31 December. In response, Guterres’s spokesperson, Stéphane Dujarric, said the UN was aware of Danon’s announcement. ‘From our side, the Secretary-General’s door remains open,’ Dujarric stated.
The UN Secretary-General’s annual report on conflict-related sexual violence is typically shared with involved countries before publication. In last August’s report, Israel was warned it could be listed as a party suspected or responsible for sexual violence in armed conflict situations. Hamas also appeared on the list, linked to alleged sexual violence during its 7 October 2023 attack on Israel, which triggered the Gaza war, and alleged hostage abuse.
At the time, the UN cited ‘credible information’ regarding alleged sexual violence by Israeli security forces against Palestinian detainees in prisons and detention centres, adding that UN inspectors had been denied access to such facilities. ‘We invited UN representatives to come to Israel to examine these baseless claims. They chose not to,’ Danon said.
Relations between the UN and Israel have hit their lowest point since the 2023 Hamas attack on Israel, which sparked the Gaza conflict. Israeli authorities have criticised Guterres and other UN officials for condemning Israel’s devastating strikes on Gaza. Guterres was declared ‘persona non grata’ by Israel in 2024. Tel Aviv has also accused UNRWA staff of participating in the Hamas attack.