By Saqib S. Qureshi — SCN News
UNITED NATIONS — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu mounted a combative defence of Israel’s military campaigns at the United Nations on Thursday, declaring that the decision to attack Iran was among the easiest he had made and rejecting accusations of genocide in Gaza, as dozens of diplomats walked out of the General Assembly chamber in a dramatic display of Israel’s deepening diplomatic isolation.
The protest began almost as soon as Netanyahu approached the rostrum. Delegates streamed toward the exits while others booed, as supporters in the gallery stood, applauded and chanted in support of Israel. The disruption became loud enough for General Assembly President Khalilur Rahman to repeatedly call the chamber to order. The Palestinian mission had earlier encouraged other delegations to participate in the walkout.
Netanyahu responded immediately, calling the departing diplomats “moral cowards” and arguing that Israel’s military operations were protecting not only Israelis but countries represented by some of the officials leaving the hall. He claimed that leaders of some governments privately thanked Israel for its actions against Iran even while publicly criticising the country.
The confrontation transformed Netanyahu’s UNGA81 appearance into more than another defence of Israeli policy. His speech unfolded before a visibly divided chamber at a moment when Israel faces sustained international criticism over Gaza, its military actions across the region and the conduct of the war with Iran. The mix of walkouts, boos and applause offered an unusually stark visual measure of those divisions.
Netanyahu strongly defended the decision to strike Iran, telling the assembly that launching the attack was “one of the easiest decisions” he had ever made. He presented the campaign as necessary to prevent what Israel regarded as an existential threat from Tehran and argued that Israeli military action had benefited countries beyond Israel itself.
The Israeli leader also praised President Donald Trump, describing the United States under Trump as Israel’s most important partner in its confrontation with regional adversaries. Netanyahu thanked Trump for what he called his “bold leadership,” despite signs of strain between the two men over how the Iran conflict should ultimately be brought to an end.
That relationship has become an important backdrop to Netanyahu’s appearance in New York. His UN visit is unusually brief and, unlike several previous trips to the United States, does not include a meeting with Trump. The absence does not by itself establish a rupture in U.S.-Israeli relations, but it comes as Washington explores diplomatic options surrounding Iran while Netanyahu continues to publicly defend the military campaign.
Netanyahu also used the podium to reject allegations that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza, calling the accusation the “biggest lie of the century.” His speech followed several days in which leaders at UNGA81 had sharply criticised Israel’s conduct in the Palestinian territory, putting Gaza at the centre of the annual gathering’s wider debate over war, civilian protection and Palestinian statehood.
Those allegations remain intensely contested. Netanyahu and the Israeli government reject genocide accusations and maintain that Israel is fighting armed groups while seeking to minimise civilian casualties. Palestinian officials and a number of international critics argue that the scale of civilian deaths, destruction, displacement and restrictions in Gaza demonstrate grave violations of international law. The competing claims have become a central part of the diplomatic confrontation surrounding Israel at the United Nations.
Netanyahu sought to turn that criticism back on governments condemning Israel. He argued that countries benefiting from Israeli actions against Iran and other armed groups were unwilling to publicly acknowledge those benefits and accused Western European leaders of yielding to what he described as antisemitic political pressure.
His speech also targeted New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani, who has accused Netanyahu of war crimes and genocide and previously said he would seek his arrest if legally possible. Netanyahu rejected those accusations and accused Mamdani of antisemitism and spreading falsehoods about Israel and its military. Mamdani’s criticisms and Netanyahu’s response have turned the Israeli prime minister’s visit into a domestic political confrontation in the city hosting the United Nations as well as an international diplomatic dispute.
Netanyahu also criticised Qatar and Türkiye, accusing them of spreading false claims about Israel. Both countries have sharply criticised Israeli military actions and have played prominent roles in regional diplomacy, including efforts involving Gaza and wider Middle East tensions.
The walkout gave those political disputes a powerful visual dimension. A majority of visible seats were empty after scores of representatives departed, while Netanyahu’s supporters remained vocal from the gallery. The competing reaction — diplomats leaving below while supporters cheered above — captured the sharply polarised international response surrounding the Israeli leader.
It also followed another politically charged walkout at UNGA81 just a day earlier. The U.S. delegation left the chamber during Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian’s address on Wednesday, when he declared that Iran could not be forced to surrender while saying Tehran remained prepared to pursue diplomacy with Washington.
The back-to-back protests have brought the Middle East conflict directly into the General Assembly chamber. Pezeshkian used the podium to portray Iran as resisting American pressure; Netanyahu used it a day later to argue that military action against Tehran had protected Israel and other countries. In both cases, opposing delegations chose to register their objections by leaving the room.
For Netanyahu, however, the political stakes extend beyond the diplomatic confrontation in New York. Israel is approaching an election, and his address at times carried the tone of a domestic campaign speech as he defended his wartime leadership and portrayed Israel as confronting enemies abroad while facing what he considers unfair criticism internationally.
His central argument was uncompromising: Israel would continue military action where its government believed national security required it, regardless of international condemnation. Netanyahu told the assembly that Israel would continue defending the state and said it had “no other choice” but to prevail against its enemies.
But the scene inside the General Assembly demonstrated the diplomatic cost accompanying that strategy. Netanyahu came to New York promising to defend Israel’s record before the international community; instead, the opening moments of his address were dominated by diplomats walking out of the chamber.
The speech therefore produced two competing messages from the same UN stage. Netanyahu portrayed Israel’s wars against Iran and other adversaries as necessary acts of national and regional defence. Dozens of diplomats responded by refusing to remain in the chamber to hear that defence.
For UNGA81, the spectacle underscored how deeply the wars in Iran and Gaza have fractured international diplomacy. Netanyahu remains backed by the United States and defended Israel’s military strategy without retreat, but the mass walkout showed that a substantial group of governments is prepared to register its opposition not only through speeches and resolutions, but through a highly visible protest while Israel’s prime minister is at the podium.