UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has issued a call to action to the world, urging its citizens to make an immediate, collective effort to address the escalating climate emergency. With rising temperatures, a loss of biodiversity, and social injustice due to climate change, Guterres urged countries to be more ambitious in their emissions-reduction goals in order to keep global warming below 1.5 degrees Celsius. He reinforced the need for the world to take necessary sustainable measures now to avoid irreversible disaster.

The United Nations General Secretary, Antonio Guterres, is facing increasing calls for his resignation due to his failure to keep to an impartial stance in the ongoing conflict between Israelis and Palestinians. This comes after a special envoy working alongside Guterres delivered a damning statement to the UN security council that Guterres had allowed himself to be politically influenced and so could no longer be trusted to remain neutral. UN countries are now beginning to consider whether it is time for Guterres to step down.

Israel showed its displeasure after UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres dismissed Israel’s accusations against Hamas for initiating the latest conflict. He went on to suggest that the attacks were not occurring in a vacuum, implying they had been caused by external factors. Israel has been swift to criticize the statement, insisting that it doesn’t take the responsibility away from Hamas, and that civilians should not have been targeted regardless of circumstance. Guterres has since backed away from his earlier sentiments, stressing his commitment to opposing anti-Semitism and maintaining Israel’s right to defend itself.