Israel should reconsider declaring António Guterres ‘persona non grata’

Portugal’s president Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa has called on Israel to reconsider its decision to declare UN secretary general António Guterres “persona non grata”. Speaking in Viseu today, Marcelo told reporters: “I think it would be very wise for the Israeli authorities to reconsider that attitude, because it was disproportionate. Where the secretary-general spoke of regret, they would have preferred to condemn, that regret was insufficient (…) In relations between states and international institutions, if the idea is to build peace, in the more or less short term, reconsidering these decisions is a matter of common sense,” he concluded. The Portuguese government has equally urged Israel to reconsider its decision, defending António Guterres’ “indispensable mission” to ensure dialogue and peace.