Israel cuts ties with UN chief's office over sexual violence blacklist

Israel's ambassador to the United Nations on Thursday announced that Tel Aviv has severed all ties with Secretary-General Antonio Guterres' office following the country's addition to a blacklist for sexual violence in armed conflict, calling the decision "outrageous" and accusing the UN chief of spreading lies against the Jewish state.

Israel severs UN ties

Ambassador Danny Danon conveyed the decision in a pre-recorded video message, stating that Israel would end contacts with Guterres' office following the blacklisting. He alleged that the secretary-general and his team "continue to spread lies against Israel to put us and Hamas terrorists on the same list," adding that such equivalence was "unacceptable."

The Israeli diplomatic mission later confirmed the rupture in a post on X, stating that Danon called Guterres directly to inform him of the decision. According to the mission, the envoy "sharply attacked him and set him straight on the lies and the political campaign that the Secretary-General is trying to wage at Israel's expense."

UN response

UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric responded to the Israeli move by stating that Guterres' door "remains open to Israeli representatives, as to the other 192 member states and the two observer states." The secretary-general's annual report on conflict-related sexual violence has yet to be officially released, with the list of parties suspected of violations typically included in an annex.

Allegations of detainee abuse

The decision to add Israel to the blacklist follows multiple reports from media outlets and human rights organizations accusing Israeli forces of sexual violence against Palestinian detainees. A New York Times opinion piece by columnist Nicholas Kristof published earlier this month alleged that Palestinian men and women had been subjected to widespread sexual assaults and other abuse during detention or in attacks by soldiers, prison guards, settlers and interrogators.

Kristof wrote that he interviewed 14 Palestinians who described rape with objects, beatings targeting genitals, threats of sexual violence and humiliation during imprisonment. The columnist noted there was "no evidence that Israeli leaders order rapes," but argued that Israeli authorities had created "a security apparatus where sexual violence has become," citing a UN report, one of Israel's "standard operating procedures."

Rights groups documentation

The New York Times article cited reports by Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor, Save the Children, B'Tselem and the Committee to Protect Journalists documenting allegations of sexual abuse and mistreatment of Palestinian detainees. Kristof also referenced a UN report published last year that accused Israel of "systematically" subjecting Palestinians to "sexualized torture."