The death blow to the UN: A crisis of international legitimacy
Published: 06:10 PM,Oct 11,2024 | EDITED : 09:10 PM,Oct 11,2024
Following the collapse of the League of Nations, established on January 10, 1920 to prevent wars and curb the proliferation of weapons after World War I, a new international order was desperately needed.
The devastation of World War II prompted representatives from 50 countries to convene in San Francisco, US, on April 25, 1945 to draft the United Nations Charter. This landmark document, adopted on June 26, 1945, officially came into effect on October 24, 1945.
The UN’s core objectives, outlined in Article 1 of its Charter, included maintaining global peace, preventing aggression, promoting human rights, and ensuring the principles of justice and international law were upheld.
At its inception, the United Nations comprised 51 member states. With the accession of South Sudan in 2011, that number swelled to 193, nearly encompassing every sovereign state. The organisation's structure includes six main bodies, such as the General Assembly, the Security Council, and the International Court of Justice.
Additionally, there are 15 specialised agencies including the World Health Organization (WHO), the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), Unesco, the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), among others.
The United States remains the largest contributor to the organisation’s budget, financing 22 per cent of its voluntary contributions. However, the Security Council’s veto system — granted to the victorious powers of World War II, namely the US, Russia, Britain, France, and China — has undermined the UN’s ability to achieve its founding purposes. The veto has been exercised over 300 times, often aligning with the narrow interests of these powers and at odds with the broader international will.
The most egregious example of this veto abuse is the US repeatedly blocking resolutions calling for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza. This has emboldened the Israeli regime to commit atrocities in Gaza, leading to the deaths of over 41,000 Palestinians, most of whom were children and women. Thousands more have been injured, and Gaza’s infrastructure has been reduced to rubble. These actions are in flagrant violation of international humanitarian law, UN resolutions, and the very principles the United Nations was designed to uphold.
In recent months, the United Nations has faced unprecedented contempt from Israeli leaders. Last May, Israel’s representative to the UN, Gilad Erdan, publicly tore up the UN Charter, the organisation's very constitution, in protest against a General Assembly decision that supported Palestine’s application for full membership. This was followed by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s provocative speech at the General Assembly in September, where he issued threats and derided the International Criminal Court’s Prosecutor Karim Khan.
Most recently, Israel’s Foreign Minister, Israel Katz, declared the UN Secretary-General, António Guterres, a 'persona non grata,' effectively banning him from entering Israel. This marks a historic precedent and reflects the moral decay of the officials of what is often referred to as the 'only democracy in the region.'
The actions of the Israeli government, bolstered by unwavering support from the US and other Western powers, have dealt a death blow to the United Nations’ legitimacy.
By shielding Israel from accountability and allowing it to operate above the law, these countries have effectively revived the 'law of the jungle,' undoing decades of work aimed at establishing global justice and peace.
If the world truly desires peace, security, and justice, reforming the United Nations — particularly the Security Council — has become an urgent and unavoidable task. Only through such reform can the world hope to restore faith in international law and the ideals upon which the UN was built.
Translated by Badr al Dhafari
The original version of this article was published in the print edition of Oman Arabic newspaper on October 9
The devastation of World War II prompted representatives from 50 countries to convene in San Francisco, US, on April 25, 1945 to draft the United Nations Charter. This landmark document, adopted on June 26, 1945, officially came into effect on October 24, 1945.
The UN’s core objectives, outlined in Article 1 of its Charter, included maintaining global peace, preventing aggression, promoting human rights, and ensuring the principles of justice and international law were upheld.
At its inception, the United Nations comprised 51 member states. With the accession of South Sudan in 2011, that number swelled to 193, nearly encompassing every sovereign state. The organisation's structure includes six main bodies, such as the General Assembly, the Security Council, and the International Court of Justice.
Additionally, there are 15 specialised agencies including the World Health Organization (WHO), the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), Unesco, the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), among others.
The United States remains the largest contributor to the organisation’s budget, financing 22 per cent of its voluntary contributions. However, the Security Council’s veto system — granted to the victorious powers of World War II, namely the US, Russia, Britain, France, and China — has undermined the UN’s ability to achieve its founding purposes. The veto has been exercised over 300 times, often aligning with the narrow interests of these powers and at odds with the broader international will.
The most egregious example of this veto abuse is the US repeatedly blocking resolutions calling for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza. This has emboldened the Israeli regime to commit atrocities in Gaza, leading to the deaths of over 41,000 Palestinians, most of whom were children and women. Thousands more have been injured, and Gaza’s infrastructure has been reduced to rubble. These actions are in flagrant violation of international humanitarian law, UN resolutions, and the very principles the United Nations was designed to uphold.
In recent months, the United Nations has faced unprecedented contempt from Israeli leaders. Last May, Israel’s representative to the UN, Gilad Erdan, publicly tore up the UN Charter, the organisation's very constitution, in protest against a General Assembly decision that supported Palestine’s application for full membership. This was followed by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s provocative speech at the General Assembly in September, where he issued threats and derided the International Criminal Court’s Prosecutor Karim Khan.
Most recently, Israel’s Foreign Minister, Israel Katz, declared the UN Secretary-General, António Guterres, a 'persona non grata,' effectively banning him from entering Israel. This marks a historic precedent and reflects the moral decay of the officials of what is often referred to as the 'only democracy in the region.'
The actions of the Israeli government, bolstered by unwavering support from the US and other Western powers, have dealt a death blow to the United Nations’ legitimacy.
By shielding Israel from accountability and allowing it to operate above the law, these countries have effectively revived the 'law of the jungle,' undoing decades of work aimed at establishing global justice and peace.
If the world truly desires peace, security, and justice, reforming the United Nations — particularly the Security Council — has become an urgent and unavoidable task. Only through such reform can the world hope to restore faith in international law and the ideals upon which the UN was built.
Translated by Badr al Dhafari
The original version of this article was published in the print edition of Oman Arabic newspaper on October 9