Antonio Guterres Invokes Article 99. Warns of Mass Displacement to Egypt

What does this mean? What difference will it make?

The SG at the Council meeting he convened today under Article 99

For the first time in his tenure as Secretary General (and for only the sixth time in the entire history of the UN since 1945) Antonio Guterres invoked Article 99 of the United Nations Charter to compel a Security Council meeting on the unfolding catastrophe in Israel and Gaza. Whereas under normal circumstances only members of the Security Council can request such a meeting, this provision is the one tool that the Secretary General has at his disposal to force the council to action. But action in this case simply means convening a meeting—the Secretary General can’t offer any resolutions, nor can he force a vote.

Still, this was an institutionally significant move. It also sets into motion yet another potential clash at the Security Council in which the United States may stand alone in blocking a resolution calling for a robust ceasefire. This time, however, the stakes are much higher than they were just three weeks ago…