New York. No giving in on Gaza, no doubts about action against Iran: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu emphatically defended his course at the United Nations. He rejected international accusations against his country and at the same time attacked his critics. “Accusing Israel of genocide is the biggest lie of the century,” he said in New York.
A few hours earlier, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas had accused Israel of waging a “genocidal war” in the Gaza Strip in his video speech to the UN. There was also criticism around the UN headquarters in eastern Manhattan: dozens of people protested there against Netanyahu's participation in the UN general debate. When he came to the podium in the UN building, numerous delegations in the audience stood up and left the hall.
Netanyahu is largely isolated internationally because of Israel's actions in the Gaza Strip. Many Western partners also distanced themselves from Netanyahu and his government. The Israeli Prime Minister only wanted to stay in the USA for a few hours, which was an unusually short time. On the sidelines of the UN General Assembly, he held only a few meetings with high-ranking politicians from other countries.
"Israel did not commit genocide. Israel prevented genocide," Netanyahu emphasized in his speech. That is exactly what the Islamist terrorist organization Hamas would have done if Israel had not stopped them.
The Islamist Hamas and terrorists from other extremist organizations kidnapped more than 250 people from Israel to the Gaza Strip during the massacre on October 7, 2023. The unprecedented attack that left around 1,200 dead in Israel triggered the Gaza War.
Since then, more than 73,900 Palestinians have been killed in the Gaza Strip, according to the Hamas-controlled health authority. The statistics do not differentiate between civilians and armed fighters. There is strong criticism around the world of the Israeli military's harsh actions.
Israel's relations with the UN have also been at a low point since the Gaza war. UN representatives and investigative commissions set up by the UN accuse Israel of serious violations of international law. A UN report concluded that the country was committing genocide and war crimes in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. Israel rejects the allegations and has accused the world organization of bias for years.
In New York, Netanyahu also lashed out at Zohran Mamdani, whom he described as the “anti-Semitic mayor of New York.” Mamdani is one of Netanyahu's harshest critics in the USA. He describes the Israeli head of government as a war criminal and accuses Israel of genocide against the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip. Netanyahu landed in New Jersey instead of New York because of voting difficulties and concerns that Mamdani might try to prevent the Israeli government plane from being parked at JFK airport for a longer period of time, the Israeli newspaper “ynet” wrote.
Almost at the same time as Netanyahu's speech, Mamdani announced on Platform X that he had planted an olive tree with a Palestinian family from Gaza at his official residence the previous night. He later said that Netanyahu "used his speech to repeat baseless lies to whitewash his genocide against the Palestinians."
Hundreds of pro-Palestinian protesters marched through Manhattan and demonstrated against his actions in the Gaza war on the occasion of Netanyahu's participation in the UN general debate. A small group of pro-Israel demonstrators had also gathered not far away. Several people were taken into custody during demonstrations in front of the UN, said an NYPD spokesman. According to media reports, these included the actresses Susan Sarandon and Hannah Einbinder.
In addition to Israel's actions in the Gaza Strip, Netanyahu also defended the attacks on Iranian nuclear facilities. "Destroying Iran's nuclear facilities was difficult, it was a very difficult undertaking, but for me it was one of the easiest decisions I ever had to make as prime minister - because if we hadn't done it, we would all be dead," he said.
"I vowed to stop Iran's murderous dictatorship from developing nuclear bombs - nuclear weapons aimed at destroying Israel, nuclear weapons that could threaten the entire world," he continued. “That’s exactly what we did.”
The International Atomic Energy Agency, secret services and experts assess the actual extent of the permanent weakening of the Iranian nuclear program differently. The US intelligence community's unclassified annual report said there was no evidence of a political decision to build a nuclear bomb in Iran.
Israeli media reported before Netanyahu's speech that it would also be aimed at the home audience. A new parliament will be elected in Israel on October 27th. According to polls, it could be difficult for Netanyahu's camp to secure a majority.
