United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres says he “deeply regrets” the U.S. decision to block former Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad from serving as the next U.N. special representative to Libya. U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Nikki Haley blocked his appointment Friday, claiming the U.N. has been biased in favor of the Palestinian Authority and that the move was intended to show U.S. support for Israel. This is U.N. Secretary-General Guterres.

Secretary-General António Guterres: “I believe he is the right person for the right job at the right moment. He has qualities that are recognized everywhere. He has a competence that nobody denies. And Libya requires the kind of capacity that he has. And I think it’s a loss for the Libyan peace process and for the Libyan people that I am not able to appoint him.”