By Michelle Nichols
UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) -United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres will warn U.S. President Donald Trump against ethnic cleansing in Gaza after Trump proposed that the United States take over the enclave and Palestinians be resettled elsewhere.
Guterres is due to address the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People later on Wednesday, said U.N. spokesperson Stephane Dujarric.
“The Secretary-General will say that the search for solutions, we must not make the problem worse,” Dujarric said. “It is vital that we stay true to the bedrock of international law. It is essential to avoid any form of ethnic cleansing.”
Dujarric said it would be a “fair assumption” to view Guterres remarks as a response to Trump’s proposal. He said Guterres would also reaffirm the two-state solution. Earlier on Wednesday Guterres spoke with Jordan’s King Abdullah.
The United Nations has long endorsed a vision of two states living side by side within secure and recognized borders. Palestinians want a state in the West Bank, East Jerusalem and Gaza Strip, all territory captured by Israel in the 1967 war with neighboring Arab states.
Israel withdrew soldiers and settlers from Gaza in 2005. The territory has been ruled by Hamas since 2007 but is still considered to be under Israeli occupation by the United Nations. Israel controls access.
A deadly attack by Hamas militants on southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023 triggered war that has since laid most of the territory to waste. A deal on a ceasefire and the release of hostages held by Hamas went into force on Jan. 19.
(Reporting by Michelle Nichols)
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