Rebeca Grynspan could eventually be appointed as the next United Nations Secretary-General. If selected, she would make history as the first woman, the first Central American, and the first Jewish person to lead the United Nations. She has emerged as the early frontrunner in the selection process to succeed António Guterres for the term starting January 1, 2027. In the UN Security Council’s initial secret straw poll, Grynspan led the candidate pool by securing 10 "encourage" votes and only one "discourage" vote.
The parents of the now UN Trade and Development Secretary-General Rebeca Grynspan - Manuel Grynspan Burstin and Sara Mayufis Schapiro were Polish Jewish refugees. They left Poland separately in the mid-1930s due to the rise of Nazi expansion. They later met, fell in love, and married in a British displaced persons camp in Cyprus before emigrating to Costa Rica.
Grynspan's family knows very well what it is to be Jewish. Her maternal grandparents are historically documented as Polish Jews who were killed by the Nazis during the Holocaust. Her sister, niece and nephew live in Israel. Rebeca is a sensitive lady, and invokes her background not to favor any nation, but to advocate neutrally for global peace, calling herself a "daughter of peace".
While Israeli media have highlighted her Jewish identity and family ties positively, the Israeli government has remained publicly silent on its preferred candidate.
Guterres leaves behind him a UN increasingly hostage to the games of the Muslim Brotherhood and the growing contempt for Jews and the Jewish state.
