Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu faced boos, scattered applause and a mass walkout of delegates during his address to the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) this Thursday, one of the tensest scenes of this year’s session, as he defended Israel’s actions in Gaza, the West Bank and Iran before a chamber left largely empty.
As Netanyahu made his way to the podium, dozens of representatives began leaving the hall in protest. Much of the chamber emptied out within minutes, forcing General Assembly President Khalilur Rahman to repeatedly call for order as delegates filed toward the exits.
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PM Netanyahu responded to the walkout directly and immediately from the podium. “If there are other moral cowards who have not yet left the room, please do so now,” he said, prompting further reaction from those still seated.
Following this, he argued that “in defending itself, Israel is also defending many of the countries whose delegates just left this room,” claiming that some of those same governments privately thank Israel for its actions against Iran, even as their representatives publicly walked out.
The speech came after a week in which numerous world leaders renewed criticism of Israeli military operations in Gaza and the continued expansion of settlements in the West Bank. Netanyahu devoted much of his address to responding to that criticism, directing particularly sharp remarks at Britain and France, two European governments that have hardened their stance against Israeli settlement expansion in recent months.
Beyond the walkout, Netanyahu’s roughly 40-minute address was repeatedly interrupted by audible boos from delegates who remained in the chamber, mixed with scattered applause from supporters, producing one of the most visibly hostile receptions a foreign representative has faced at the General Assembly in recent memory.
The scale of the walkout and the audible booing reflected the broader diplomatic isolation Israel has faced over the past year, with numerous governments having hardened their public positions on the war in Gaza and settlement activity in the occupied West Bank in the weeks leading up to this year’s General Assembly session. Earlier in September, Britain, France, Canada and more than twenty other governments issued a joint statement condemning Israel’s E1 settlement expansion project as “unacceptable,” warning it could fragment the West Bank and undermine the possibility of a contiguous Palestinian state.
Outside the UN headquarters, the tension surrounding Netanyahu’s appearance was also visible on the streets, where demonstrators from the group Jewish Voice for Peace staged a sit-in blocking traffic near the UN building in protest of the Israeli PM’s visit. His government had separately deployed an extensive public messaging campaign across the city ahead of his arrival, including hundreds of posters and vehicles carrying pro-Israel and anti-Iran messaging.
Israeli Genocide in Gaza
The military siege of Gaza by Israel, which began on October 7, 2023, has resulted in the deaths of 73,922 Palestinians, predominantly women and children, and injured 174,995 others. Israel has destroyed 90% of Gaza’s infrastructure, with the estimated cost of reconstruction reaching $70 billion dollars.
In October 2025, a fragile ceasefire was agreed upon between the Palestinian resistance and the Israeli state. However, Israel has continually violated this truce. Since then, the occupation has killed 1,402 Palestinians and injured 4,881 people. During this period, the bodies of 834 Palestinians have been recovered.
The diplomatic walkout underscored the international community’s rejection of Israel’s actions in the Palestinian enclave. The boos and walkouts sent a clear message: the international community will not tolerate the genocide and ethnic cleansing in Gaza.
Author: Laura V. Mor
Source: UN News / Agencies
