'Complicit in war crimes': FM Katz slams UN's Guterres for mourning UNRWA terrorist

Outcry as UN chief pays tribute to top Hamas commander

Israel's Foreign Minister Yair Lapid has accused UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres of being "complicit in war crimes" after he mourned the death of a senior Hamas commander killed in an Israeli airstrike.

Guterres issued a statement on Sunday expressing his condolences over the death of Tayseer Jabari, the head of Hamas's military wing in the northern Gaza Strip, who was killed in an Israeli airstrike on Saturday.

Lapid slammed Guterres's statement, saying that it was "outrageous" to mourn the death of a terrorist who was responsible for the deaths of innocent civilians.

"Guterres is complicit in war crimes by mourning the death of a terrorist who was responsible for the deaths of innocent civilians," Lapid said in a statement.

"The UN should be condemning Hamas for its terrorist activities, not mourning the death of one of its leaders.

Guterres's statement has also been criticized by other Israeli officials, including Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, who said that it was "unacceptable" to mourn the death of a terrorist.

The United States has also condemned Hamas for its terrorist activities, and has called on the group to cease its attacks on Israel.