Israel is a Rogue State
Consider the events of the recent weeks and months: The Israeli Prime Minister, standing at the rostrum of the UN General Assembly, branded the institution a "contemptible" entity, a "house of darkness," and a "swamp of antisemitic bile." Israel’s outgoing ambassador to the UN, appearing before the same assembly, utilized a miniature paper shredder to tear apart the UN Charter, declaring that the organization’s headquarters in New York "should be closed and wiped off the face of the earth." Israel’s Foreign Minister has declared the UN Secretary-General *persona non grata*, barring him from entering the country under the false pretext that he failed to condemn Iranian strikes. The Israeli government has actively obstructed the UN-mandated commission of inquiry tasked with gathering evidence regarding the October 7 attacks. The Israeli Knesset is currently moving to designate UNRWA—a long-standing UN agency—as a "terrorist organization." For twelve consecutive months, the Israeli military has subjected UN schools, warehouses, and refugee camps in Gaza to bombardment, resulting in a staggering death toll of 228 UN personnel. In the words of the Secretary-General: "Never in the history of the UN have so many of our colleagues been killed in any single conflict or disaster since the founding of the organization."Who is supplying weapons to Israel for the genocide in Gaza?
The Israeli military is now attacking UN peacekeepers in southern Lebanon. According to the United Nations, "Five UN 'Blue Helmet' peacekeepers have been wounded in clashes near UNIFIL positions that have been damaged by Israeli forces."How is this acceptable? Or even permissible?
Perhaps the most pressing question is this: How does Israel retain its standing as a member of the United Nations? Why has it not been expelled from an organization it so relentlessly and brazenly disparages and undermines? It is true that other states with abysmal human rights records remain members—Syria, Russia, and North Korea, among them—but none of these have engaged in the wholesale slaughter of UN staff; none have sent tanks into UN bases; and none have refused to comply with over two dozen UN Security Council resolutions. No nation on earth has dared to declare the UN Secretary-General a *persona non grata* in more than 60 years. To be clear: it is not that there is no mechanism for expelling a UN member state. Article 6 of the UN Charter states: “A Member of the United Nations which has persistently violated the Principles contained in the present Charter may be expelled from the Organization by the General Assembly upon the recommendation of the Security Council.” Some might argue that no member state has ever been expelled under Article 6. Furthermore, the United States—which has used its veto to shield Israel from more than 50 UN Security Council resolutions since the early 1970s—would never approve such a "recommendation."Noam Chomsky on the refugee crisis
This is a logical objection. However, history teaches us that there are ways to circumvent a Security Council veto. As Thomas Grant, an expert in international law and a former adviser to the U.S. State Department, argued in October 2022 when proposing the expulsion of Russia following Vladimir Putin’s illegal invasion of Ukraine: "UN members have twice in the past deemed a particular member’s credentials unworthy of a seat at the organization’s table. In both instances, the UN found a solution." In 1971, socialist and non-aligned nations of the Global South voted in the UN General Assembly to recognize the People's Republic of China as "the only legitimate representative of China," thereby unseating the representatives of Taiwan (the Republic of China), a founding member. The exit of Taiwan and the entry of the PRC were decided by the General Assembly, not the Security Council. Three years later, as pointed out by human rights lawyer and former UN official Saul Takahashi, the UN General Assembly voted to reject the credentials of the South African delegation—based not on the UN Charter, but on the assembly’s own "rules of procedure"—effectively barring South Africa from participation until 1994.Who is more powerful in the military rivalry between Iran and Israel?
And what were the two primary reasons the UN General Assembly suspended South Africa’s participation? The policy of apartheid against its own Black population and the illegal occupation of neighboring Namibia. Sounds familiar, does it not? Crucially, as Thomas Grant wrote, "the action against South Africa did not follow any specific procedure in the UN Charter, nor any established path of UN precedent," demonstrating that "when member states consider a matter of sufficient gravity, they invariably seek to act, and an innovative policy takes effect."Rewriting the history of the peace process
So, in the current climate, what could be more "grave" for UN member states than an attack on the UN itself by one of its own members? An attack on the authority, the personnel, the headquarters, and the very Charter of the United Nations? Last Saturday, 40 countries issued a joint statement condemning the public and ongoing attacks by Israel on UN peacekeepers in Lebanon—but words alone are insufficient. UN member states must now take decisive, practical action. The Israeli government may seek to portray the UN—the General Assembly in particular—as irrelevant, ineffective, and riddled with anti-Israel bias, yet Israel’s very existence was made possible by a UN General Assembly resolution. The country’s own 1948 Declaration of Independence references the United Nations seven times, each instance marked by profound gratitude. Therefore, expelling Israel from the United Nations, or at the very least, suspending its participation in the General Assembly as a first step, would send a powerful message—to the people of Israel and to the rest of the world. The power of the UN remains vital. The lives of UN staff and peacekeepers remain precious. A rogue state cannot declare war on the United Nations and continue to act with impunity. — Mehdi Hasan, CEO and Editor-in-Chief, ZeteoThis article was originally published in The Guardian under the headline Israel is a rogue nation. It should be removed from the United Nations.