Netanyahu defends Israel at UN as dozens of delegates walk out
Photo: REUTERS
Dozens of delegates streamed out of the United Nations Hall on Thursday as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu mounted a forceful defense of Israel’s regional military actions.
The walkout highlighted the intense, competing pressures confronting Israel’s leader, who battles growing international isolation over the Gaza war while campaigning at home for an upcoming 27 October election.
As diplomats exited in protest, Netanyahu labeled the departing officials “moral cowards,” while his supporters in the gallery chanted “The people of Israel live” in Hebrew.
During his address, Netanyahu directly targeted New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani for accusing him of war crimes, while also berating Western European leaders for yielding to what he termed “antisemitic mobs”.
Making his first trip to New York since Mamdani assumed office in January, Netanyahu addressed the mayor directly, saying, “You tried to stop me from coming here. You tried. You tried to silence me. Well, you can’t silence me. You can’t silence the truth.”
Mamdani had previously campaigned on a pledge to arrest Netanyahu for alleged war crimes if he visited New York City, though he later acknowledged lacking the legal authority to enforce such an arrest. Earlier, Mamdani publicly described Netanyahu as “the architect of a horrific genocide against Palestinians.”
Rejecting the accusations, Netanyahu asserted, “Here’s a simple truth: Israel didn’t commit genocide. Israel prevented genocide.” He accused Mamdani of supporting Hamas militants - a charge that Mamdani firmly denied.
Addressing critics directly, Netanyahu declared, “To all those spreading these lies about my country and about our brave soldiers, whether they sit in this hall or in the office of the antisemitic mayor of New York, I say this: Shame on you!”
In response, Mamdani issued a statement criticizing the address, “As he has done time and again, Prime Minister Netanyahu used his speech to repeat baseless lies meant to sanitize his genocide of Palestinians. Yet no lie can change the fact that he remains the subject of an International Criminal Court arrest warrant alleging war crimes and crimes against humanity.”
Netanyahu also accused Qatar and Turkey of spreading false claims regarding Israel, provoking swift pushback from both nations. A spokesperson for Qatar’s Foreign Ministry posted on X that Doha rejected allegations of manipulating public opinion, arguing that Netanyahu aimed to deflect blame from his own operational policies on the ground.
At the same time, Burhanettin Duran, the communications director for Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan, dismissed Netanyahu’s allegations against Turkey and Erdogan as completely baseless.
Duran said on X, “Netanyahu’s insolent and despicable remarks targeting our President cannot obscure his massacres, the humanitarian catastrophe unfolding in Gaza, or the legal proceedings before international law.”
Spanning around 40 minutes, Netanyahu’s campaign-style address aired live during prime time across all four main Israeli television channels less than five weeks before general elections. To bolster his domestic standing while his political bloc trails rivals in opinion polls, his office confirmed paying for 500 pro-Israel and anti-Iran billboards and dozens of trucks displaying supportive messages across Manhattan ahead of the event.
During his speech, Netanyahu detailed Israel’s multi-front fight across seven fronts, including the conflict with Iran that escalated after joint US-Israeli strikes in late February.
Utilizing visual props during his UN presentation, Netanyahu held up a pager linked to an attack that killed and wounded members of Iran-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon. He also displayed a Starlink satellite internet receiver, announcing his intention to leave the device for the Iranian delegation.
Netanyahu asserted, “So when they inevitably defect, they too will be able to freely tell their story on social media,” while predicting that the Iranian people would eventually topple their government.
Outside the UN headquarters, several hundred protesters blocked traffic while chanting, “Stop arming Israel, let Gaza live” and “Stop arming Israel, let Iran live.” until police officers detained dozens of demonstrators.
Although Netanyahu completed his brief US trip without scheduling a meeting with US President Donald Trump, he praised the American leader during his speech.
Netanyahu said, “We will continue to defend our state. We will continue to win because we have no other choice. In this battle against the barbarians, we’ve had no greater partner than President Trump. I thank him. I thank him for his bold leadership.”
Nevertheless, Israel continues to face deepening diplomatic isolation stemming from the Gaza war, which began after Hamas-led attacks nearly three years ago.
Outstanding International Criminal Court arrest warrants issued in 2024 against Netanyahu, his then-defense minister, and the then-military commander of Hamas continue to restrict his international travel. Former steadfast allies Britain, France, and Canada recently enacted sanctions against Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, drawing a muted response from Washington.
Expressing frustration at these allies, Netanyahu remarked, “The leaders of these countries have chosen to succumb to the antisemitic mobs. They’ve chosen weakness. They’ve chosen appeasement.”
Finally, Netanyahu downplayed the escalating violence by Israeli settlers against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, characterizing the perpetrators as “a handful of young juvenile delinquents, about 150 in number, who throw stones, who chop down olive trees.”.
Condemning vigilantism, he concluded, “Occasionally ... they lit some fires. I can’t stand that. I won’t stand for vigilantism. We’re a country of law.”
Source: Reuters (adapted)
