Israel's Ambassador to the United Nations Gilad Erdan today blasted some of its officials on X, formerly Twitter, and "severed ties" with one who shook hands with a minister of Iran. He accused the United Nations of "living under a rock" and having "blood on its hands". "The UN's support for and legitimization of genocidal terrorists is a threat to civilization!" he wrote in one of his posts.
What set the Ambassador off was apparently a post by Martin Griffiths, the Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator. "The specter of death is hanging over #Gaza.With no water, no power, no food and no medicine, thousands will die. Plain and simple," Mr Griffiths had posted.
The comment reflected the UN stance on Israel's warning to people in North Gaza to move south ahead of a widely expected ground attack by the Israeli forces.
"Have you been living under a rock? Your double standards truly know no bounds," Ambassador Erdan wrote in a blistering post.
"Where was your outcry when Hamas funneled all UN funds to dig terror tunnels and manufacture rockets targeting Israeli civilians?
"When Hamas diverted every resource -- water, energy, civilian infrastructure -- from the Gazan population, to their terror capabilities? Why have you never condemned this publicly?!" he added.
"Your voluntary blindness to the facts played a pivotal role in the creation of the terror machine that Gaza is today. UN officials have zero credibility or legitimacy to reprimand the country at the forefront of the war on terror! While we try to rescue the hostages. Shame on you!" he added.
Then came his response to a photo of Tor Wennesland, the United Nations Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, who was photographed shaking hands with Iran's finance minister.
Ambassador Erdan posted a withering comment, saying Mr Wennesland should not "forget to wash the blood of Israeli babies off your hands after that handshake".
"Today (!!!), senior UN official, Tor Wennesland not only met with the Iranian regime's FM, but didn't even bother condemning Iran for its role in the massacre of Israeli women and children," Ambassador Erdan posted.
"It's no secret that Hamas terrorists are openly praising Iran for funding, arming, and training them.At the VERY SAME TIME, Iran's leader, Ayatollah Khamenei, openly called on the Muslim world to expand the attack on Israel," he added.
The UN officials are yet to respond.
Israel, or its ally, the US, are yet to officially accuse Iran of backing Hamas, though various Israeli leaders and defence officials have been reiterating it.
After Israel asked the residents in northern Gaza to evacuate to the south, the UN said it "considers it impossible for such a movement to take place without devastating humanitarian consequences".
Around 1.1 million people - nearly half the population of 2.4 million - live in the north of Gaza and on Sunday thousands were seen using the designated safe routes to evacuate.
