Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu launched a forceful attack on Israel’s critics from the podium of the United Nations General Assembly, targeting European countries, Turkey and pro-Palestinian New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani.
The speech was marked by tension, with dozens of national representatives leaving the chamber shortly before Netanyahu began speaking. The Israeli prime minister accused those who walked out of “moral cowardice” and invited others who shared their views to leave before he continued.
Netanyahu targets France and Britain
Netanyahu devoted a significant portion of his address to defending Israel’s policy on settlements and rejecting accusations of colonialism.
“They accuse Israel, tiny Israel, of colonialism. What colonialism?” he said, directing particular criticism at France and Britain.
“For God’s sake, these are the people who invented the term,” he said, adding that the colonial empires of the two countries once “covered the entire planet”.
Erdoğan targeted as Netanyahu mentions Cyprus
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan also came under attack, with Netanyahu branding him a “tyrant”.
The Israeli prime minister accused Erdoğan of responsibility for the deaths of thousands of Kurds, imprisoning journalists and threatening Greece.
He also referred directly to Cyprus, accusing Turkey of “illegally occupying the northern part of Cyprus”.
‘Jews no longer feel safe in New York’
Netanyahu also turned his attention to the United States and particularly New York, arguing that many Jewish residents no longer feel safe following the election of pro-Palestinian Mayor Zohran Mamdani.
“They tell me New York is no longer the city they knew,” Netanyahu said, while condemning what he described as an increase in antisemitic incidents in the United States.
Addressing Mamdani directly, Netanyahu said: “The lies that you and other antisemites spread about the Jews and the Jewish state have real consequences.”
Mamdani responds to Netanyahu
Mamdani responded shortly afterwards.
In a social media post, the New York mayor said that “no lie from Benjamin Netanyahu changes the fact that an International Criminal Court arrest warrant remains outstanding against him”.
Mamdani, who belongs to the left wing of the Democratic Party, had said earlier in the year that he was examining whether the warrant could be enforced if Netanyahu visited New York for the UN General Assembly.
He later acknowledged that he did not have the authority to take such action.
The exchange adds another chapter to Israel’s increasingly strained relationship with political figures and movements critical of its military policy in the Gaza Strip and its broader approach to the Palestinian issue.
Source: ANA-MPA and CNA
