Israel’s rejection of two-state solution threatens global peace, UN chief says

Mr Netanyahu’s rejection of a Palestinian state in any post-war scenario opened a wide rift with Israel’s closest ally, the United States

Antonio Guterres, secretary-general of the United Nations, speaks on Tuesday at the United Nations headquarters (Peter Afriyie/AP)

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s rejection of a two-state solution will indefinitely prolong a war threatening global peace and emboldening extremists everywhere, the United Nations’ chief has said.

In his toughest language yet on the Israeli-Hamas conflict, secretary-general Antonio Guterres told a ministerial meeting of the UN Security Council that “the right of the Palestinian people to build their own fully independent state must be recognised by all, and a refusal to accept the two-state solution by any party must be firmly rejected”.