Mr. Ahmed Aboul Gheit, Secretary-General of the League of Arab States, sent two copies of a letter he wrote to Mr. Antonio Guterres, Secretary-General of the United Nations, and to Mr. Zhang Hen, Permanent Representative of the People's Republic of China and President of the current session of the United Nations Security Council. In the letter, Mr. Aboul Gheit expressed his profound concern over the recent statement made by the Israeli Minister of Heritage. The minister had mentioned that "considering the use of an atomic bomb on the Gaza Strip is among the options to contemplate" in the midst of the ongoing Israeli aggression against the 2.2 million Palestinians in the Strip.
Gamal Roshdy, the spokesperson for the Secretary-General, conveyed that Mr. Aboul Gheit's addresses contained robust criticism of these statements. He asserted, "This extremist rhetoric, issued by a member of the Israeli government, however outrageous it may sound, exposes the depth of extremism and fanaticism that has infiltrated the echelons of power in Israel. With a government that harbours such ideological delusions and entrenched hatred, it is sadly unsurprising that we witness horrifying massacres being committed daily against innocent civilians in the Gaza Strip."
Mr. Aboul Gheit emphasised in his speech, "The issue goes beyond the Israeli minister's acknowledgment of his country's possession of nuclear weapons, a fact that openly violates international law. These statements also lay bare the racist mindset and perilous intentions of certain Israeli officials who advocate the use of weapons of mass destruction for a comprehensive assault on Palestinians, treating it as a strategic option and encouraging further war crimes."
The official spokesperson highlighted that the letter strongly reaffirmed "the unwavering Arab stance on the imperative of establishing a nuclear-free zone and eliminating other weapons of mass destruction in the Middle East, emphasising the urgency of achieving this goal promptly."
In closing, Aboul Gheit appealed to Mr. Guterres, and by extension, to the member states of the UN, as well as UN and international agencies, stressing "the international community's duty to promptly halt Israeli aggression against the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. It is crucial to hold Israel accountable for all the violations and crimes it has committed." He cautioned against allowing this unjust war to persist for another day, as it would sow the seeds of hatred and extremism in the region for years to come. He also called upon the President of the Security Council, and by extension, the member states of the Security Council, "not to underestimate or trivialise the extremist Israeli statement and the sinister intentions it conceals." He emphasised that the threat of using nuclear weapons represents a direct menace to international peace and security, underscoring the necessity for the Security Council to address this issue with the utmost seriousness.
