Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu delivered a speech to the United Nations General Assembly in New York, which was delayed by loud chanting in support of Palestinians. During his address, a portion of the delegates left the chamber, and Netanyahu described those who left as 'morally cowardly'.
'If there are any more moral cowards in this room who have not left, I ask that you do so now,' Netanyahu said. The protest followed a request by the Palestinian delegation, which had proposed to the other missions that they join in leaving the chamber. The departure of part of the delegation was met with disapproval and booing, while Netanyahu's team stood and applauded, and the presiding officer called for respect for order.
Protesters gathered outside the United Nations headquarters. Several hundred people gathered near the UN headquarters on Manhattan, with some protesters blocking traffic and chanting slogans such as 'Stop arming Israel, let Gaza live' and 'Stop arming Israel, let Iran live'.
The mayor had previously called Netanyahu a war criminal. Netanyahu had stated a few days prior that he was coming to New York 'to tell the truth about our heroic soldiers', but also 'to tell the truth about you', addressing Mamdani directly, whom he accused of supporting Hamas. According to a statement from Netanyahu's office, around 50 billboards with messages of support for Israel and against Iran were placed across the city, with tens of trucks displaying messages of support for Israel. One of the billboards read: 'Freedom is not defended by itself. America and Israel stand together against terror', with a note at the bottom indicating that the campaign was funded by the state of Israel.
Netanyahu stated that Israel, by defending itself, was simultaneously protecting many other states whose representatives had left the chamber. According to his words, many representatives of those countries had thanked Israel in private conversations for 'destroying Iran's nuclear program'. 'Destroying 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, because if we had not done it, we would all have been dead,' he said.
Speaking about the attack on 7 October 2023, Netanyahu said that the attackers went house to house, shooting at Israeli civilians from close range, and that on that day 1,200 Israelis were killed. This, he stated, is equivalent to 40,000 innocent Americans being killed in less than 24 hours, or 16 times 11 September. The response, he said, was that they rose up and fought like lions.
Netanyahu criticised the media for distorted reporting on the violence, attributing it to a small number of teenage 'delinquents'. 'I will not tolerate this. We are a country of law,' he said. He thanked Trump for his support, stating: 'We have no greater partner than President Trump', adding that the US and Israel were working together to 'save civilisation'. The Israeli armed forces were described as 'the most moral army in the world'.
'Three years ago, our brave soldiers began fighting a war on seven fronts. But there is also the eighth front of this war. It is a war for truth. It is waged in world media, and most viciously, on social media. We have taken countless steps to protect the civilian population. Is this genocide? No, of course not. It is the opposite of genocide,' he added.
'To all who spread lies about my country and its brave soldiers, whether you sit in this chamber or in the mayor's office in New York, I say this: Have you no shame?' Netanyahu said. 'Mr Mayor, since you were elected mayor of this city, many Jews no longer feel safe in New York,' he said, concluding: 'We cannot avoid the truth before us. Many in the free world are refusing to defend freedom.'
