Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has used his platform at the United Nations General Assembly to attack critics and allies alike, and his presence caused a stir in the chamber. Speaking before the United Nations General Assembly on Thursday, Netanyahu attacked New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, his critics and Iran’s leaders, as well as allied countries such as the United Kingdom, Turkiye and France. race to remain in power before the October 27 elections, and analysts say his speech at the UN General Assembly was aimed at both the people of his country and international viewers. Dozens of envoys from around the world left as the speech began, some booing and heckling, while Netanyahu’s own team stood and applauded, and the session’s president shouted for order. “If there are other moral cowards who have not left this room, please do so now,” Netanyahu said. He referred to the war the United States and Israel launched against Iran in February, saying: “Devastating Iran’s nuclear facilities was difficult, it was very difficult to do.” “But for me, it was one of the easiest decisions I have ever had to make as prime minister,” stating that if he had not done so, “we would all be dead,” he added. In his own speech to the United Nations General Assembly on Wednesday, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian also addressed the nuclear issue, calling out “Double standards.” “The nuclear weapon is in Israel, but the inspectors are in Iran. Israel kills, but Iran is subject to sanctions,” Pezeshkian said. Netanyahu said Thursday that Israel was fighting a “war on seven fronts,” including Gaza, the occupied West Bank, Syria, Lebanon, Iran, Yemen’s Houthis and militias in Iraq. “We are going to win. We have no choice,” Netanyahu declared, echoing the words of his older brother Yonatan. Netanyahu, who was assassinated in 1976 during Operation Entebbe in Uganda. In his speech, Netanyahu took aim at Turkiye and its president Recep Tayyip Erdogan, among others, accusing Ankara of being a “spreader of anti-Semitic lies.” The Turkish presidency responded with a statement saying that Netanyahu’s use of the UN platform to attack Erdogan was “incompatible with the ideals of peace, the rule of law and dialogue that the United Nations represents.” He noted the International Criminal Court’s arrest warrant against Netanyahu for war crimes and crimes against humanity. “Netanyahu’s outrageous and despicable comments against President Erdogan cannot obscure his massacres, the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza or the legal proceedings against him under international law,” Director of Presidential Communications Burhanettin Duran said in a statement published in Netanyahu’s line of fire. They have become increasingly outspoken in their criticism of the country’s actions and have imposed limited sanctions on Israeli exports from the occupied West Bank “They accuse Israel, little Israel, of colonialism, some colonialism. And who accuses us? Among them are people from Great Britain and France. For God’s sake, they invented the term,” he said. But Netanyahu thanked his “friend,” US President Donald Trump. “In this battle against the barbarians, we had no greater partner than President Trump,” he said, as the American delegation joined the Israeli delegation in applauding Netanyahu’s comment. “I thank you,” Netanyahu said, adding that Israel and the United States had acted together as pilots from both countries “flew joint missions over the skies of Iran.” [from Gaza]”, while defending Israeli actions in the enclave against charges of genocide. “To all those who spread lies about my country, whether you sit in this room or in the office of the anti-Semitic mayor of New York, I say this: shame on you,” Netanyahu said while attacking Zohran Mamdani, who had previously said he would push for the arrest of the Israeli prime minister during his visit to the city. “Mr. Mamdani, you tried to stop me from coming here. You tried to silence me. Well, you can’t silence me,” Netanyahu said while denying that Israel committed genocide in Gaza. Reacting to Netanyahu’s comments, Mamdani called the accusations against him “baseless lies” intended to “clean up its genocide of Palestinians.” Since October 7, 2023, Israel has faced repeated accusations of genocide in Gaza, as well as systematic war crimes in Gaza and the occupied West Bank. The International Criminal Court based in La Haya (ICC) said in 2024 that he had reasonable grounds to believe Netanyahu was responsible for war crimes in Gaza, where more than 73,000 Palestinians have been killed. Netanyahu denies ICC charges. Netanyahu attended the UNGA meeting despite an ICC order calling for his arrest. While he was welcomed, the Trump administration denied a visa to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, who addressed the UNGA via video statement. pre-recorded from Ramallah earlier in the day. ‘War criminal’ As Netanyahu spoke, activists from the US-based Jewish Voice for Peace organization protested outside, accusing the United Nations of “playing host to a war criminal.” Meyerson-Knox, the group’s communications director, Jazeera Meyerson-Knox said that “solidarity with Palestinian freedom has never been greater, and here in the United States we demand with one voice that Israel be stopped.” Addressing divisions in Israel, Netanyahu said: “Throughout this long war, our goal never wavers: to win with unwavering determination… What unites us is much stronger: our history, our values, our courage.” Ariel Cohen, a fellow at the Atlantic Council’s Eurasia Center, said the Israeli prime minister gave a “good speech” at the United Nations General Assembly, but that he did so in the “wrong forum.” Israel; “He is who he is communicating with,” Cohen told Al Jazeera. “He is presenting points that should be raised to the Israeli audience for their political survival.”
