With Israel, Palestine and Lebanon on Fire, Why is UN Mediation Absent? : Iason Athanasiadis / Stimson Center

CIA Director Burns at Gaza Negotiations in Cairo

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Where are the diplomats? Where is the UN?

"Heads of intelligence agencies are increasingly supplanting diplomats in peacemaking and mediation efforts."

"A senior official who spoke to this analyst on condition of anonymity said he presented a paper arguing that the UN was confronted with a new type of conflict. He noted that the Palestinians view their struggle as existential, while non-state armed groups in Iraq, Syria, and Yemen further complicate and differentiate the conflict from those the UN has sought to mediate in the past. However, he said, most participants in the meeting dismissed his conclusions, contending that hostilities would soon end with the elimination of Hamas.

"Seven months later, UN agencies in Amman held what one official in attendance described as a “surreal meeting” chaired by Sigrid Kaag, the recently appointed Senior Humanitarian and Reconstruction Coordinator for Gaza. “I was shocked by the interventions I heard because they all still seemed to think that this war would end with Hamas disappearing and the Palestinian Authority stepping up to administer Gaza,” said the UN official, also speaking on condition of anonymity. “It was UN business-as-usual, going from one agency chief to the next to outline what their agency could provide in a reconstruction scenario, with no one understanding that we’re now in a different ballgame.”
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"Several UN officials faulted Secretary-General António Guterres for shying away from high-profile mediations even as the international system experiences a particularly tense period. Guterres’ credibility has also been damaged by having to fire three appointees: his envoy for technology over harassment charges; the head of the UN Office for Project Services over embezzlement; and the head of the Economic Commission for Africa over an ill-considered appointment. Guterres’ deputy, Amina Mohamed, faces corruption charges in Nigeria, while Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA) chief Rola Dashti is accused of mismanagement."

“It’s an interesting phenomenon that the intel agencies are getting more involved and reminiscent of the Iraq occupation when the military played a major diplomatic role because they were on the ground.”

Editor’s Note: Iason Athanasiadis, a former UN officer and longtime journalist covering the Middle East, has written for Stimson about the many unresolved conflicts in the region. He traveled to Beirut to report this piece, which reflects the frustration of many current and former UN officials at their organization’s exclusion from key peacemaking efforts in Gaza and elsewhere.