Israel Katz, Israeli foreign minister, has announced a ban preventing Antonio Guterres, secretary general of the United Nations (UN), from entering the country.

In an X post on Wednesday, Katz termed Guterres “undesirable”.

“I decided today to declare U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres an undesirable personality in Israel and to ban his entry into Israel,” Katz said.

Guterres failed to “unequivocally condemn Iran’s criminal attack on Israel” on Tuesday, Katz said, and as a result “does not deserve to set foot on Israel’s soil.”

Iran said its missile attacks on Israel was retaliation for the deaths of Hassan Nasrallah, Hezbollah leader; Ismail Haniyeh, Hamas political leader; and Abbas Nilforoushan, a senior commander in the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).

Israeli air strikes killed those three figures in recent times, tipping the region closer toward a multi-front crisis.

After Iran fired missiles at Israel, Gutteres condemned the broadening of the Middle East conflict.

“This must stop. We absolutely need a ceasefire,” the UN chief said.

Katz accused Guterres of giving “support to the terrorists, rapists and murderers of Hamas, Hezbollah, the Houthis and now to the mother ship of global terrorism, Iran”.

“Israel will continue to protect its citizens and maintain its status and national honor with or without Antonio Guterres,” the foreign minister added.

Banning the UN chief from entering the country marks a major escalation in tensions between Israel and the global body.

Several UN officials were also banned from entering Israel in recent months, including Francesca Albanese, UN special rapporteur for Palestinians, and the UN humanitarian office chief in occupied Palestinian territory.

Israel has also attacked the credibility of the UN agency for Palestinian Refugees.

It is not immediately clear if Katz has the authority to bar Guterres from the country. In most climes, such authority would lie only with the interior minister.

Hurricane Helene has rocked the United States, leading to the death of at least 116 people and causing power outages in more than two million households across the country.

The storm, which started last Thursday, brought catastrophic flooding, tornado damage, collapsed trees, and closed roads in six states.

According to the BBC, Helene is the most powerful hurricane on record to hit Florida.

A​t least 42 people have been reported dead in North Carolina, 29 in South Carolina, 25 in Georgia, 15 in Florida, two in Tennessee and one in Virginia.

Buncombe County in Florida appeared to be the most severely affected area, with at least 30 fatalities reported there.

About 1,000 people have “remained unaccounted for” in the county due to lack of cell phone service and electricity.

Ryan Cole, an emergency official in the county, described the hurricane as “a biblical devastation”.

“This is the most significant natural disaster that any one of us has ever seen,” Cole added.

As of Monday morning, 500,000 people remained without power in both North Carolina and Georgia as well as 750,000 in South Carolina.

North Carolina and the Big Bend region of Florida experienced devastating flooding, with certain areas completely submerged.

Coastal and island towns, such as Cedar Key and Treasure Island, suffered storm surge flooding exceeding 15 feet above ground level.

Recovery from the storm is estimated to cost between $95 and $110 billion nationwide.

Officials have, however, warned that more storms could be on the horizon, as the end of hurricane season is not until November 30.

Seventeen people have been killed in a mass shooting in a remote South African town.

According to the BBC, the police said two homesteads in the town of Lusikisiki in the Eastern Cape, were targeted.

At least 12 women and one man were said to have been killed in one location, with three women and one man murdered in a second location.

An 18th victim is in critical condition in hospital.

The police said a manhunt for the perpetrators is under way.

Senzo Mchunu, the police minister, is expected to provide an update and visit the area where the attack occurred.

South African media report that the victims were preparing to attend a traditional mourning ceremony for a mother and daughter who were murdered a year ago.

They were packing goods and presents, including furniture, for the event when the attacked occurred on Friday night.

“The gunmen came and shot randomly, killing everyone. Women and children were also killed in the bloody shooting,“ the reports read.

“This has left the community terrified.”

Officials are yet to determine the motive or make any arrests.