Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility
UN Chief Warns 'A Wind of Madness Is Sweeping the Globe'
gvw_ap_news
By Associated Press
Published 5 years ago on
February 5, 2020

Share

UNITED NATIONS — U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned Tuesday that “a wind of madness is sweeping the globe,” pointing to escalating conflicts from Libya and Yemen to Syria and beyond.

“All situations are different but there is a feeling of growing instability and hair-trigger tensions, which makes everything far more unpredictable and uncontrollable, with a heightened risk of miscalculation.” — United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres
At a wide-ranging news conference, he said, “All situations are different but there is a feeling of growing instability and hair-trigger tensions, which makes everything far more unpredictable and uncontrollable, with a heightened risk of miscalculation.”
The U.N. chief also expressed great frustration that legally binding U.N. Security Council resolutions “are being disrespected before the ink is even dry.”
Guterres singled out Libya where he called the current offensives by the warring parties “a scandal” — coming soon after world powers and other key countries adopted a road map to peace in Berlin on Jan. 19 that called for respect for a U.N. arms embargo, an end to foreign interference in the fighting by rival governments and steps toward a cease-fire.
Libya has been in turmoil since 2011, when a civil war toppled longtime dictator Moammar Gadhafi who was later killed.
A weak U.N.-recognized administration that holds the capital Tripoli and parts of the country’s west is backed by Turkey and to a lesser degree Qatar and Italy. On the other side is Gen. Khalifa Hifter, whose forces launched a surprise offensive to capture the capital last April from their base in the country’s east and are backed by the United Arab Emirates and Egypt as well as France and Russia.
Photo of United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres
United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres speaks during a Holocaust memorial event at U.N. headquarters, Monday, Jan. 27, 2020. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

The Secretary-General Also Expressed ‘Enormous Concern’ at the Escalation of Attacks in Idlib

Guterres said the 55-point Berlin agreement has been repeatedly violated by fighting and continuing arms deliveries. “We are seeing more and more civilians being targeted, … migrants in a desperate situation and all the commitments that were made apparently were made without a true intention of respecting them,” he said.
The secretary-general also expressed “enormous concern” at the escalation of attacks in Idlib, Syria’s last rebel-held province with a population of 3 million, and said the U.N. is “particularly worried” that the escalation now includes the Syrian and Tukish armies bombing each other. He again urged a cessation of hostilities “before the escalation comes to a situation that then becomes totally out of control.”
As for Yemen, Guterres said he was very encouraged recently to see Iranian-backed Houthi Shiite rebels stop attacking Saudi Arabia and the Saudis, who back the country’s internationally recognized government, limiting their military actions. But unfortunately, the last few days have seen “a new escalation,” he said, adding, “We are doing everything we can for this escalation to be reversed, and everything we can to create the conditions for a true political dialogue to be re-established.”
In Iraq, which has faced mass anti-government protests since Oct. 1 in which at least 500 demonstrators have been killed, the secretary-general called for the human rights of protesters to be protected. The protesters have decried rampant government corruption, poor services and lack of employment and are demanding the overthrow of the political establishment, electoral reforms and snap elections.

The Decades-Old Conflict Between Israel and the Palestinians

Guterres said militias have sometimes been “the worst perpetrators of violations of human rights” and attacks against protesters. It’s critical for the government to ensure that the army and policy regain the monopoly on the use of force to ensure the normal functioning of the state, he said.

“As economies falter, poverty remains entrenched. As future prospects look bleak, populist and ethnic nationalist narratives gain appeal. As instability rises, investment dries up, and development cycles down. When armed conflicts persist, societies reach perilous tipping points. And as governance grows weak, terrorists get stronger, seizing on the vacuum.” United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres
He also said Iraq’s unity must be preserved and “external interferences” must be avoided because divisions are deep and the “risks of the country imploding are high… (which) would have devastating consequences for the region.”
On the decades-old conflict between Israel and the Palestinians, the secretary-general said the U.S. peace plan unveiled last week doesn’t comply with U.N. General Assembly and Security Council resolutions and international law. The resolutions support a two-state solution based on 1967 borders and call all Israeli settlements in the West Bank illegal.
The secretary-general stressed that global problems “feed on each other.”
“As economies falter, poverty remains entrenched. As future prospects look bleak, populist and ethnic nationalist narratives gain appeal,” he said. “As instability rises, investment dries up, and development cycles down. When armed conflicts persist, societies reach perilous tipping points. And as governance grows weak, terrorists get stronger, seizing on the vacuum.”
Guterres said that this year — as the United Nations marks its 75th anniversary — he will press “to break the vicious circles of suffering and conflict and push for a surge of diplomacy for peace.”

DON'T MISS

What Are Fresno Real Estate Experts Predicting for 2025 and Beyond?

DON'T MISS

First California EV Mandates Hit Automakers This Year. Most Are Not Even Close

DON'T MISS

Fresno Unified Substitute Teacher Arrested in Online Child Exploitation Case

DON'T MISS

Investors Buy Fig Garden Village. How Much Did It Sell For?

DON'T MISS

Fresno County DA Wants Teens Tried as Adults in Caleb Quick Murder

DON'T MISS

State Farm Wins First-Ever Emergency Rate Hike in California

DON'T MISS

Work Permits Reinstated for UC Merced International Students, Anxiety Persists

DON'T MISS

Tatum to Miss Remainder of Playoffs After Achilles Tendon Surgery

DON'T MISS

Fresno Police Seek Public’s Help Identifying Shooting Suspect

DON'T MISS

MLB Reinstates Pete Rose and Shoeless Joe Jackson, Making Them Hall of Fame Eligible

DON'T MISS

Karbassi Running for Fresno County Elections Clerk, Says He Can ‘Do Better’

DON'T MISS

Global Eggs Completes Acquisition in US, Closes New Deal in Europe

UP NEXT

Netanyahu Says There Is ‘No Way’ Israel Halts the War in Gaza Until Hamas Is Defeated

UP NEXT

Cassie Testifies in Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs Sex Trafficking Trial. What to Know About the Star Witness

UP NEXT

Once in Sync, Trump and Netanyahu Now Show Signs of Division

UP NEXT

Jayson Tatum Carried off Floor With Right Leg Injury and Celtics Star Will Have MRI

UP NEXT

Dallas Mavericks Win the NBA Draft Lottery, Eye Cooper Flagg for No. 1 Pick

UP NEXT

Trump Envoys See Better Chance for Hostage Release in Gaza

UP NEXT

US Inflation Stable Before Expected Jump From Tariffs

UP NEXT

Trump Signs Economic Partnership Agreement With Saudi Arabia

UP NEXT

Trump Tower Damascus? Syria Seeks to Charm US President for Sanctions Relief

UP NEXT

Trump Plans to Accept Luxury 747 From Qatar to Use as Air Force One

State Farm Wins First-Ever Emergency Rate Hike in California

10 hours ago

Work Permits Reinstated for UC Merced International Students, Anxiety Persists

11 hours ago

Tatum to Miss Remainder of Playoffs After Achilles Tendon Surgery

11 hours ago

Fresno Police Seek Public’s Help Identifying Shooting Suspect

11 hours ago

MLB Reinstates Pete Rose and Shoeless Joe Jackson, Making Them Hall of Fame Eligible

11 hours ago

Karbassi Running for Fresno County Elections Clerk, Says He Can ‘Do Better’

12 hours ago

Global Eggs Completes Acquisition in US, Closes New Deal in Europe

13 hours ago

‘I Never Said He Called My Son the N-Word.’ Fresno Unified Trustee Thomas Tries to Erase Accusation Against Former Bullard Coach

14 hours ago

UnitedHealth Group CEO Steps Down as Company Lowers, Then Withdraws Financial Outlook for 2025

14 hours ago

FDA and RFK Jr. Aim to Remove Ingestible Fluoride Products Used to Protect Kids’ Teeth

15 hours ago

Fresno Unified Substitute Teacher Arrested in Online Child Exploitation Case

A 43-year-old Fresno man identified as a certified substitute teacher with the Fresno Unified School District has been arrested for allegedl...

6 hours ago

Carlos Gonzalez, 43, of Fresno, a substitute teacher at Fresno Unified School District has been arrested for allegedly attempting to meet a minor for sex after contacting the child through a messaging app, prompting authorities to urge potential victims to come forward. (Fresno County SO)
6 hours ago

Fresno Unified Substitute Teacher Arrested in Online Child Exploitation Case

9 hours ago

Investors Buy Fig Garden Village. How Much Did It Sell For?

Fresno clovis caleb quick
10 hours ago

Fresno County DA Wants Teens Tried as Adults in Caleb Quick Murder

10 hours ago

State Farm Wins First-Ever Emergency Rate Hike in California

11 hours ago

Work Permits Reinstated for UC Merced International Students, Anxiety Persists

11 hours ago

Tatum to Miss Remainder of Playoffs After Achilles Tendon Surgery

Fresno police are seeking help identifying a suspect caught on video after a shooting near First Street and Belmont Avenue left one person injured on Sunday. May 11, 2025. (Fresno PD)
11 hours ago

Fresno Police Seek Public’s Help Identifying Shooting Suspect

11 hours ago

MLB Reinstates Pete Rose and Shoeless Joe Jackson, Making Them Hall of Fame Eligible

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Search

Send this to a friend