Benjamin Netanyahu, facing re-election challenges in Israel, delivered a contentious speech at the UN General Assembly on Thursday where he criticized world leaders including New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani and French President Emmanuel Macron. Netanyahu accused Mamdani of being antisemitic and defended his government against accusations of war crimes from the International Criminal Court. He also sharply criticized Iran’s role in developing nuclear weapons and praised Israel's military actions against them, drawing protests and walkouts during his speech.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-09-25,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, facing a difficult reelection campaign at home, delivered a fiery UN speech Thursday assailing enemies and allies alike — and sparking uproar in the chamber.
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Netanyahu → face → chamber
Locked in a tight race to stay in power in October 27 elections, Netanyahu used the global platform at the UN General Assembly to attack everyone from the leaders of Iran to New York’s first Muslim mayor and partners Britain, France and Turkey.
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Netanyahu → lock → mayor
Dozens of envoys from across the world walked out, some jeering and booing, while Netanyahu’s own team stood and applauded, and the speaker of the session shouted for order.
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speaker → walk → order
“If there are any other moral cowards who haven’t left this hall, please do so now
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who → be → hall
,” Netanyahu told those turning their backs on him.
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Netanyahu → tell → him
He lashed out at New York’s popular, leftist Mayor Zohran Mamdani as “antisemitic” and claimed that “since you were elected mayor of this city, many Jews no longer feel safe.”
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Jews → lash → city
Mamdani had threatened to execute an ICC arrest warrant against Netanyahu, before conceding he did not have the authority.
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he → threaten → authority
The Hague-based International Criminal Court (ICC) said in 2024 it had reasonable grounds to believe Netanyahu was responsible for war crimes in the Gaza campaign, which responded to Hamas’ deadly October 7, 2023 terrorist attacks.
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which → base → attacks
Netanyahu denies the ICC claims.
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Netanyahu → deny → claims
Adding to tensions, dozens of protesters gathered near the UN.
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dozens → add → UN
Several demonstrators were detained, including Hollywood actor Susan Sarandon.
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demonstrators → detain → Sarandon
One of Netanyahu’s fiercest critics, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, was unable to attend the UN gathering after the Trump administration refused him a visa.
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administration → attend → visa
In a video message played ahead of Netanyahu’s speech, Abbas said, “We reject these unlawful punitive measures, and we reject the accusations and justifications on which they were based.”
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they → play → which
Britain and France, historic partners of Israel that have become increasingly outspoken in their criticism, were also in Netanyahu’s firing line.
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that → become → line
Britain and France have both imposed limited sanctions on Israeli exports from the West Bank.
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Britain → impose → Bank
And French President Emmanuel Macron drew Israel’s ire for claiming in his own UN speech that Hamas was not active in the West Bank.
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Hamas → draw → Bank
Netanyahu attacked Britain and France for their past colonial empires during his turn at the lectern.
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Netanyahu → attack → lectern
“They accuse Israel, tiny Israel, of colonialism — some colonialism.
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They → accuse → colonialism
And who’s accusing us?
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who → accuse → us
For God’s sakes, they invented the term,” he said.
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he → invent → term
Netanyahu already had poor relations with Macron, who led a push by Western nations at last year’s UN General Assembly to recognize a Palestinian state.
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who → have → state
Netanyahu had especially harsh language on Iran, calling it a “murderous dictatorship.”
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Netanyahu → have → it
He said the war in which Israeli and U.S. forces have attacked Iran for close to seven months has stopped Tehran from being able to develop nuclear weapons.
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forces → say → weapons
“I vowed to prevent Iran’s murderous dictatorship from developing atomic bombs, nuclear weapons aimed at destroying Israel, nuclear weapons that could threaten the entire world,” he said.
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he → vow → world
He said the fall of Iran’s leadership, whose envoy at the UN displayed a portrait of slain Quds Force commander Qasem Soleimani on their vacant desk, was not “far.”
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envoy → say → desk
Despite the onslaught, Iran’s government has retained control and continues to defy the United States by effectively blocking the Strait of Hormuz.
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government → retain → Hormuz
During his speech, Netanyahu brandished a pager device like those that Israeli intelligence reportedly engineered with explosives before having them shipped to operatives of Iran-backed Lebanese terrorist group Hezbollah.
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them → brandish → Hezbollah
They were later detonated, maiming dozens of Hezbollah operatives but also civilian bystanders.
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They → detonate → operatives
He accused Turkey of backing Iran-backed Islamist group Hamas, going on to call the country’s leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan a “tyrant.”
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He → accuse → leader
Netanyahu is only making a whirlwind stop in New York before rushing back to Israel, where the election campaign is in full swing.
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campaign → make → swing
He is not scheduled to meet any top U.S. leaders.
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He → schedule → leaders
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