Dozens of delegates walked out as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed the 81st United Nations General Assembly in New York on Thursday.
According to Hindustan Times on Friday, the walkout was encouraged by the Palestinian Mission to the UN, whose representatives were also scheduled to speak later in the day.
As Netanyahu began speaking, delegates in the hall started leaving, while his supporters inside the venue cheered him as he referred to those departing as “phony human rights protesters.”
“Where were you when the Iranian tyrants butchered and maimed tens of thousands of unarmed Iranian civilians?” Netanyahu said, adding, “If there are any other moral cowards who haven’t yet left this hall, please do so now.”
Hindustan Times reported that a confirmed list of all the countries whose delegates walked out during Netanyahu’s speech had not been reported, although multiple outlets said “dozens” of delegates left.
Photos from the convention centre showed empty seats belonging to Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Tunisia, Uzbekistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Algeria, Iran, Malaysia, Montenegro and Kyrgyzstan, among others.
Jordan, Libya, the Marshall Islands and Mauritius also had empty seats.
However, Hindustan Times noted that many of the countries had at least one delegate remaining in the hall, while others had left in protest.
Netanyahu attacks Mamdani
During his UNGA speech, Netanyahu also criticised New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, a critic of Netanyahu and Israel’s actions in Gaza and the West Bank.
Mamdani had released a video shortly before Netanyahu’s speech showing him planting an olive tree, a cultural symbol of Palestine, at Gracie Mansion, the mayor’s official residence. The video also showed him having dinner with a Palestinian family.
“Mr. Mamdani, you tried to stop me from coming here,” Netanyahu said in his speech. “You tried to silence me. Well, you can’t silence me, you can’t silence the truth. And here’s the simple truth. Israel didn’t commit genocide. Israel prevented genocide.”
“The lies you and other antisemites spread about the Jews and the Jewish state have real consequences,” he added.
