Abuja, Friday, September 25, 2026. The Nigerian press first retains an image: a nearly empty United Nations General Assembly hemicycle as Benyamin Netanyahu takes the podium. Premium Times describes dozens of delegates leaving the room in protest against the Israeli military campaign in Gaza and Lebanon, leaving the Prime Minister to address a nearly deserted hemicycle. The newspaper qualifies this gesture as a UN tradition: "walking out conveys diplomatic and political opposition to a state's policy", recalling that delegations had already left the room in 2024 and 2025 for similar reasons.

Netanyahu, in the midst of a campaign for tight legislative elections scheduled for October 27, retorts by calling the departing delegates "moral cowards" and invites those who have not yet left the room to do so. He rejects the accusation of genocide in Gaza, qualifying it as the "biggest lie of the century".

Vanguard and Punch mainly retain his attacks from all sides: New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani, described as "antisemitic" after threatening to execute an International Criminal Court warrant against him before acknowledging he did not have the authority; the United Kingdom and France, accused of having "invented" the term colonialism they reproach him for, after recognizing the State of Palestine. Premium Times also recalls that Turkey has requested an international arrest warrant against Netanyahu for the arrest of militants from the humanitarian flotilla to Gaza.

Punch and Daily Post detail at length his defense of the strike against Iranian nuclear facilities, presented as "one of the easiest decisions" of his career: "Because if we hadn't done it, we'd all be dead", he asserts, ensuring that foreign leaders have thanked him privately for this action, which he claims protected several countries whose delegates nonetheless left the room.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, denied an American visa, was only able to speak via video. In front of the UN headquarters, the New York police arrested several protesters, including actress Susan Sarandon, during a rally organized by Jewish Voice for Peace, brandishing the slogans "Stop Arming Israel" and "End the Genocide", reports Punch.

London, 25 September 2026. The British press first notes having been directly targeted by Benyamin Netanyahou at the United Nations General Assembly podium. According to the BBC, the Israeli Prime Minister rejected the accusation of genocide in Gaza by directly attacking his accusers: "They accuse Israel, tiny Israel, of colonialism... And who accuses us? Among them, people in Great Britain and France. For heaven's sake, they are the ones who invented the term." Elsewhere in his speech, summarized by the Daily Mail, Netanyahou described the accusation of genocide as the "biggest lie of the century". The BBC recalls that he remains under an arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court for alleged war crimes, a reminder that the British media places directly opposite his speech.

The institutional setting occupies a large part of the narrative across the Channel: dozens of delegations left the room upon Netanyahou's arrival, whom he called "moral cowards", assuring he wants to "win" because Israel "has no other choice". He also described the attack on Iran as "one of the easiest decisions" of his life, according to The Independent. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, denied an American visa, addressed the assembly via video to denounce a "genocidal war" and the expansion of settlements in occupied West Bank, which he considers threatening to the very existence of the Palestinian people.

Buenos Aires, September 25, 2026. A few hours after Benjamin Netanyahu's speech at the UN General Assembly, where dozens of delegations left the room and the Israeli Prime Minister called the genocide accusation the "biggest lie of the century", Argentine President Javier Milei held his only bilateral meeting of the week with a head of state in New York: Netanyahu. According to El Cronista, the two leaders met at the Israeli mission and hugged, with Netanyahu exclaiming, "Amigo!" The Israeli ambassador to the UN, Danny Danon, praised the hug on social media, estimating that "Latin America has apparently not heard of Israel's diplomatic isolation".

The private meeting, which lasted about twenty minutes according to Infobae, took place as the Israeli Prime Minister was going through, according to Ambito, "a moment of growing international isolation", just five weeks before the Israeli legislative elections on October 27. Netanyahu thanked Milei for his "firm and unconditional" support and congratulated him on the Defender of Israel award he received from a New York yeshiva, hailing him as "one of the great leaders of our time".

The meeting capped off a week in which Milei, the only Latin American leader to publicly show such support according to Infobae, defended before the General Assembly the idea that "Israel is on the right side of history" and "the only perfectly democratic and free country" in the region, according to La Nación.

Canberra, 25 September 2026. At the United Nations General Assembly on Thursday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu described the accusation of genocide in Gaza as the "biggest lie of the century", before a hall emptied by 77 delegations, according to SBS News' count. "If there are still any moral cowards in this hall, let them leave now," he said in his opening remarks, before assuring that by striking Iranian nuclear facilities on February 28, in coordination with Washington, Israel had made "one of the easiest decisions" of his term.

The Australian press first notes the electoral calculation. Five weeks before the October 27 election, where Netanyahu could lose power to his rival Gadi Eisenkot, former Israeli ambassador Michael Oren, quoted by PerthNow, judges that he "is not really speaking to the UN, he is speaking to the Israeli public", in a speech thought of as an "election campaign". PerthNow recalls that he had promised to "tell the truth" about New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani, whom he eventually described as "anti-Semitic" from the podium, after wrongly accusing him of supporting Hamas. Mamdani had described Netanyahu as the "architect of a horrific genocide".

ABC News Australia recalls that Netanyahu is the subject of an arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court for war crimes in Gaza, and notes the European sanctions against Israeli settlements after the increase in violence by settlers in the West Bank — criticisms that he brushed aside by accusing Western leaders of "giving in to anti-Semitic crowds".

Dhaka, September 25, 2026. The speech delivered on Thursday by Israeli Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu before the UN General Assembly is drawing attention from the Bangladeshi press less for its content than for the emptying of the room as he spoke. According to TBS News and The Daily Star, dozens of delegates left the hemicycle as Netanyahu took the floor, responding to a memo from the Palestinian mission calling on other delegations to join the protest gesture. Netanyahu called those who remained standing "moral cowards" and urged all others to do the same, while his own supporters in the stands chanted in Hebrew and the session president called for calm.

The Israeli prime minister, in the midst of a campaign for elections on October 27 that he could lose, targeted multiple parties: New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani, who he labeled an "anti-Semite" and falsely accused of supporting Hamas, Qatar and Turkey, which he accused of spreading lies about Israel, as well as the United Kingdom and France, whose criticism of Israeli "colonialism" he mocked. He also called Iran a "murderous dictatorship". Mamdani retorted that Netanyahu had "repeated baseless lies intended to whitewash his genocide against the Palestinians". Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, who was denied an American visa, spoke via video, denouncing Israeli policies that now threaten "the very life" of his people.

Brussels, September 25, 2026. At the United Nations General Assembly podium on Thursday, Benjamin Netanyahu delivered, according to La Libre Belgique, "an indictment against Israel's critics" as international criticism intensifies over the occupied West Bank. The newspaper notes that the Israeli Prime Minister is "embarked on a difficult re-election campaign": the Belgian press sees this New York speech as an exercise aimed at the Israeli electorate as much as at global diplomacy.

In response to accusations of colonialism, Netanyahu retorted: "They accuse Israel, tiny Israel, of colonialism, what colonialism?" He specifically targeted two European countries: "Among them, there are people in the United Kingdom and France. Good grief, they're the ones who invented the term!" On Iran, he claimed to have prevented, along with the United States, Tehran from acquiring nuclear weapons: "I have committed to preventing the murderous Iranian dictatorship from developing nuclear weapons intended to destroy Israel." He predicted that "the Iranian regime will eventually fall".

As was the case last year, dozens of delegation members left the room during his speech, a gesture initiated by the Palestinian delegation, which had called on other missions to participate in a message consulted by AFP, according to DH. The room, "rather empty since the beginning of the morning", had nonetheless filled up gradually before the speech. Netanyahu had anticipated the gesture by saying: "If there are still cowards in this room who have not left, let them do so now."

Brasília, September 25, 2026. Brazil's mission to the United Nations left the General Assembly plenary session on Thursday, as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu took the floor, joining dozens of delegations in a gesture that Brazilian diplomacy presents as more severe than that of 2024. According to a source from the mission cited by G1, Itamaraty this time asked diplomats to wait for Netanyahu to be announced and enter the room before standing up, whereas in 2024 the departure had preceded the announcement itself - a difference read by diplomacy as "a heavier condemnation".

At the podium, Netanyahu called the accusation of genocide in Gaza "the greatest lie of the century", stating: "Israel did not commit genocide. Israel prevented a genocide." He cited the sending of messages and leaflets to alert the population of combat zones as well as polio vaccination campaigns. He called the delegations leaving the room, including Brazil, "moral cowards" before even starting his speech.

The episode comes two days after President Lula, at the same podium on Tuesday, explicitly accused the "Netanyahu government" of practicing genocide against the women and children of Gaza, before returning to Brazil. At the time of the Israeli speech, the Brazilian delegation present was composed only of officials from the mission: Chancellor Mauro Vieira was at a parallel event in support of UNRWA, organized by Brazil, Jordan, and Spain, where he criticized Tel Aviv's action in Gaza. UN Secretary-General António Guterres - declared persona non grata by Israel, like Lula himself - attended the same event rather than the speech.

Ottawa, September 25, 2026. The Canadian press reads Benyamin Netanyahu's speech to the United Nations General Assembly less as a diplomatic plea than as the first act of an Israeli election campaign played out on the international stage. National Post notes that the prime minister, engaged in a tight race to stay in power, used the global platform to attack "from the leaders of Iran to New York's first Muslim mayor and partners Britain, France and Turkey". The Globe and Mail goes further: the quarrel with New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani "highlights the Israeli leader's growing isolation ahead of elections at home that he may lose".

Before the assembly, Netanyahu qualified the accusation of genocide as "the biggest lie of the century", assuring that attacking Iran was "one of the easiest decisions [he's] ever had to make". He treated as "moral cowards" the delegates who left at the call of the Palestinian mission, even inviting them to leave the room if they had not already done so. CBC News reports that the room emptied as soon as he took the floor, between boos and applause from his own camp.

The aspect most followed by Canadian media remains the confrontation with Mamdani. National Post quotes Netanyahu calling him "antisemitic" and affirming that "since you were elected mayor of this city, many Jews no longer feel safe". The Globe and Mail recalls that the Israeli government paid for 500 pro-Israel advertisements in Manhattan, one proclaiming "Freedom doesn't defend itself. America and Israel stand together against terror", signed "Paid for by the State of Israel". Mamdani, who had promised to have Netanyahu arrested under the mandate of the International Criminal Court before recognizing he did not have the legal authority, had described the prime minister as "the architect of a horrific genocide against Palestinians".

Santiago, September 25, 2026. In Santiago, where the largest Palestinian community outside the Middle East lives, the local press did not highlight the same scene from Benyamin Netanyahou's speech at the United Nations General Assembly, held in New York from September 22 to 28, as the one promoted by the Israeli side.

El Ciudadano relays a video montage produced by the Palestinian Information Center (CIP), based in Chile, which compares the words spoken by the Israeli Prime Minister and the actions of the Israeli army in Gaza and other Palestinian territories since October 2023. The site recalls that "dozens of delegates left the room" when Netanyahou took the floor, before quoting the center's statement: the Israeli leader, "who has an arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court for war crimes and crimes against humanity," would have used the UN platform again, according to the CIP, to defend the siege imposed on the Palestinians and present facts that "brutally contrast with the reality" on the ground. The media outlet specifies that the montage compares, phrase by phrase, the statements made since 2023 with images of the offensive.

Berlin, Friday, September 25, 2026. For the German press, the scene that played out on Thursday before the United Nations General Assembly says above all that diplomatic isolation is worsening. Tagesschau reports that dozens of diplomats left the room before Benjamin Netanyahu even took the stage, some whistling, others applauding. The Israeli Prime Minister called the delegations that left "moralische Feiglinge" - moral cowards - and invited those who had not yet done so to leave as well.

FAZ and ZEIT Online, whose accounts almost word for word reproduce the same dispatch, note that he categorically rejected the accusation of genocide in Gaza: "Israël des Völkermords zu bezichtigen, ist die größte Lüge des Jahrhunderts," he said in New York - accusing Israel of genocide is the biggest lie of the century. He claimed, on the contrary, that Israel had prevented one, without the German articles providing further details on this argument.

ZEIT Online emphasizes the vigor with which Netanyahu turned against two Western capitals: he attacked the United Kingdom and France over their colonial past to reproach them for calling Israel colonialist. The accusations against Qatar, Turkey, or the Mayor of New York, reported elsewhere, do not appear in the German articles consulted.

Madrid, September 25, 2026. The Spanish delegation did not even need to leave the room: it was not there. As in 2024 and 2025, the Spanish seats at the UN General Assembly remained empty on Thursday during Benjamin Netanyahu's speech, who launched at the delegations already leaving: "If there are other moral cowards who have not yet withdrawn from the room, let them do so now." Pedro Sánchez was not in New York either: the head of government had joined Boston, where he delivered a speech at Harvard that the Spanish press describes as particularly harsh on Gaza, just hours before the Israeli Prime Minister's intervention.

The Spanish gesture is part of a broader movement of delegations leaving when Netanyahu took the floor, leaving large areas empty during one of the most anticipated speeches of the high-level week. In the stands, supporters wearing kippas and Israeli flag pins chanted "Bibi, you are the light of this room" and applauded standing up.

Outside the UN headquarters, the mobilization turned into arrests: the New York police arrested several protesters who blocked First Avenue, including actress Susan Sarandon and Hannah Einbinder. Mayor Zohran Mamdani, who had called for Netanyahu's arrest in the name of the warrant issued by the International Criminal Court for war crimes and crimes against humanity related to the Gaza offensive, specified that he had studied the available legal avenues, while acknowledging that their execution depended on the federal authorities, controlled by the Trump administration.

Helsinki, September 25, 2026. Before the United Nations General Assembly, Thursday evening, Benyamin Netanyahu opened his speech by saying, according to Yle Uutiset: "If there are still cowards here, they can leave now too." A part of the room had already emptied upon his arrival at the podium, in a coordinated movement by the Palestinian mission. The Israeli Prime Minister called the departing delegations "moral cowards", reports MTV Uutiset, which cites the British Guardian for this phrase.

Netanyahu defended his country's military campaign against Iran, Hamas, Hezbollah, and Syria, stating that by protecting itself, Israel was also protecting "many of these countries whose representatives have just left this room". According to him, several leaders had privately thanked him for removing the Iranian nuclear threat, while publicly calling their departure "hypocritical". He also recalled the Hamas attack of October 7, 2023, which he described as the worst massacre of Jews since the Shoah, and thanked American President Donald Trump for his support.

On the accusation of genocide, the Israeli head of government was categorical: "We have carried out countless operations to protect the civilian population. Is this a genocide? Of course not. It's the exact opposite of a genocide." He also criticized what he saw as the insufficient support of European countries and attacked New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani, calling him a "friend" of Hamas and stating that Jews no longer feel safe in the city. The New York Times had reported this summer that Mamdani had called Netanyahu a war criminal and demanded an international arrest warrant.

Paris, September 25, 2026. At the United Nations General Assembly podium on Thursday evening, Benyamin Netanyahu made France an explicit target of his indictment against critics of Israel. "They accuse Israel, tiny Israel, of colonialism, what colonialism? Among them, there are people in the United Kingdom and in France. Good grief, they are the ones who invented the term!", the Israeli Prime Minister exclaimed, before denouncing colonies that "covered the entire planet".

The French press notes that this attack targets European capitals, such as Paris, which have toughened their tone on the occupied West Bank. Le Monde emphasizes that the speech comes "at a time when international criticism, particularly from Emmanuel Macron, is multiplying against the violence committed against Palestinians". Netanyahu designated the French President as one of the "incarnations" of a West that has given in to "anti-Semitic crowds", leaders who, in his view, have "chosen weakness" and "appeasement".

The Prime Minister also described the accusation of genocide as "the greatest lie of the century", claiming that Israel had instead "prevented a genocide", citing food aid and polio vaccination campaigns in Gaza. Dozens of delegations left the room at the call of the Palestinian mission as soon as he began speaking; he called them "moral cowards", assuring that by striking Iranian nuclear facilities, Israel had defended "many countries whose representatives have just left this room".

Budapest, September 25, 2026. The Hungarian press is extensively covering the chaotic scene that followed Benjamin Netanyahu's speech at the high-level debate of the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York on Thursday. Index reports that applause mixed with whistles, before several hundred delegates left the room, leaving most seats empty. Assembly President Halilur Rahman had to recall the delegates to order several times. The Israeli Prime Minister called these delegates "moral cowards," saying: "If there are still moral cowards who have not left the room, I ask you to do so now."

According to the MTI dispatch reported by HVG and Index, Netanyahu defended the strike against Iranian nuclear facilities as "one of the easiest decisions" he had to make as head of government. He claimed that by defending itself, Israel is also protecting several countries whose delegations left the room, adding that some of their leaders thank him "privately" for "eliminating Iranian nuclear weapons." However, HVG nuances this statement, recalling that there is no actual evidence that Iran had nuclear weapons, as the Israeli-American strikes damaged Iranian nuclear facilities without establishing a weapons program.

Jérusalem, September 25, 2026. Before the United Nations General Assembly on Thursday, Benjamin Netanyahu described the accusation of genocide against Israel as the "biggest lie of the century." "What genocidal regime gives millions of doses of polio vaccine to the enemy population? What genocidal regime allows the distribution of two million tons of food to Gaza, one ton per person?" he asked the assembly, according to the Jerusalem Post. The Prime Minister presented the essence of his speech as a description of the "fronts" on which Israel is fighting, including an information front against countries that, according to him, finance hostile campaigns: Qatar, accused of financing Al Jazeera and universities to "brainwash" young minds, and Turkey, whose president Erdogan he described as a "tyrant" hosting Hamas leaders.

The massive walkout of delegations, anticipated by Israeli services according to Ynetnews, which mentioned before the speech a possible hostile reception and diplomats ready to leave the room, was confirmed. To the protesters who remained in front of the UN headquarters, Netanyahu responded by calling them hypocrites: "Where were you when the Iranian tyrants massacred tens of thousands of unarmed civilians?" he asked, according to Arutz Sheva, before brandishing a Starlink device as a symbol of what the Iranian regime fears, according to him.

New Delhi, September 25, 2026. The speech delivered on Thursday by Benyamin Netanyahu at the United Nations General Assembly podium is seen by the Indian press first and foremost as an exercise in domestic politics. Deccan Chronicle notes from the outset: the Israeli Prime Minister, "facing a difficult re-election campaign at home", spoke before the UN while he is engaged in a tight race to stay in power in the October 27 legislative elections. Swarajya shares the same perspective, recalling that this speech took place on the third day of the general debate of the 81st session of the General Assembly, held from September 22 to 28 in New York.

In the room, dozens of delegates left their seats upon Netanyahu's entrance, some jeering, while his team stood up to applaud; Assembly President Khalilur Rahman had to call for order several times. The Palestinian mission to the UN had called for this collective withdrawal beforehand, presented as a protest against Israel's conduct in Gaza. Netanyahu retorted without delay: "If there are other moral cowards who have not yet left this room, let them do so now."

The Indian press also notes the barrage targeting Iran, the United Kingdom, France, and Turkey, as well as New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani, described as "anti-Semitic" — an attack to which the New York official responded by accusing Netanyahu of repeating "baseless lies intended to whitewash his genocide of Palestinians" and recalling that he remains targeted by an arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court for war crimes. Netanyahu also defended the offensive against Iran as one of the "easiest" decisions of his term, citing the threat of Iran's nuclear program, and asserted that in defending itself, Israel was also protecting the countries whose representatives had just left the room.

Reykjavik, September 25, 2026. As dozens of delegations ostentatiously left the United Nations General Assembly hall on Thursday when Benyamin Netanyahou took the podium, Iceland chose not to associate itself with the gesture. The Icelandic representative remained seated throughout the speech, confirms a collaborator from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to the media Heimildin.

The collective walkout had been called by the Palestinian mission to the UN, which had urged other states to fill the hall and then leave together as soon as the Israeli Prime Minister arrived at the podium, to signify their refusal of genocide, war crimes, and the illegal occupation of Palestine. Dozens of chairs were visibly empty in photos taken after the movement, reports Vísir.

Benyamin Netanyahou responded from the podium to those who still hesitated to leave, calling them "moral cowards": "If there are still moral cowards here who have not left the hall, do so now," he said at the beginning of his speech, according to Vísir. Jeers, protest cries, and supportive applause mixed in the hemicycle, forcing the President of the General Assembly to call for calm several times before Netanyahou could resume his speech in front of largely empty rows.

Rome, September 25, 2026. The Italian press reports on a speech at the UN General Assembly that was perceived as a comprehensive offensive, delivered on Thursday to a half-empty room. Dozens of delegations left the hemicycle upon the arrival of Benyamin Netanyahu, with some chanting pro-Palestinian slogans; the Israeli Prime Minister addressed them, saying, "If there are still moral cowards who have not left this room, let them do so now," according to ANSA. He rejected the accusation of genocide in Gaza, calling it the "biggest lie of the century," assuring that Israel "did not commit genocide" but "avoided it," citing one million polio vaccinations and two million tons of food distributed in the enclave, as reported by Libero Quotidiano.

The indictment then targets several capitals. Netanyahu reproaches France and the United Kingdom for having labeled Israel as "colonialist," returning the accusation by reminding them that they "invented the term," notes ANSA. He accuses Qatar of spreading "lies" and refers to Turkish President Erdogan as a "tyrant." The Mayor of New York, Zohran Mamdani, despite an olive branch extended earlier, is labeled "anti-Semitic" and "a friend of Hamas." Mamdani responds by denouncing "unfounded lies" meant to "whitewash his genocide of Palestinians," recalling that Netanyahu remains under an arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court, as reported by La Repubblica.

Mexico, September 25, 2026. Before a sparse United Nations General Assembly, the Mexican press first notes the electoral calendar that underpins Benjamin Netanyahu's speech. El Informador emphasizes that the Israeli Prime Minister traveled to New York in the midst of the Israeli election campaign for the October 27 elections, and that his nearly 40-minute speech targeted both domestic opinion and the UN audience.

The newspaper reports on the frontal attack against New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani, who was labeled "anti-Semitic" after calling for an international arrest warrant against Netanyahu for war crimes. "You can't silence me. You can't silence the truth," the Israeli leader responded, adding that Israel had not committed genocide in Gaza but had prevented it by avoiding the "friends of Hamas" from killing "all" Israelis. He also praised Donald Trump as the "best ally" of the Hebrew state, thanking him for his "courageous leadership".

Reforma, for its part, details the scene in the room: dozens of delegates left their seats when Netanyahu took the podium, responding to the call from the Palestinian mission for a collective withdrawal. Assembly President Khalilur Rahman had to call for "order in the room". Netanyahu labeled the departing delegates as "moral cowards", stating that in defending itself, Israel was also defending "many of the countries whose delegates just left", some of whose leaders would thank him privately, he claimed, for eliminating "Iran's nuclear weapons". He presented the attack on Iran as "one of the easiest decisions" of his career.

Kuala Lumpur, September 25, 2026. The Malaysian press first notes the domestic scope of the speech delivered by Benyamin Netanyahu on Thursday at the United Nations podium. The Sun MY emphasizes that the Israeli Prime Minister, "facing a difficult reelection campaign at home", addressed the General Assembly knowing he would "lash out at both enemies and allies that have crossed him in recent months", ahead of the elections. The newspaper also recalls that he had to mention the case of the Israeli ambassador to Washington, Yechiel Leiter, whose son, a soldier, was injured in a car-ramming attack attributed to a Palestinian in the occupied West Bank.

The most visible target remains New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani, who had promised to execute the arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court against Netanyahu if he came to the city for the General Assembly — the ICC had estimated in 2024 that it had "reasonable grounds" to judge him responsible for war crimes in Gaza, which he disputes. Mamdani later conceded that he did not have the authority for such a gesture. Netanyahu had promised to "tell the truth about you", accusing Mamdani of "supporting the Hamas terrorist monsters" and "inciting riots against New York Jews"; the official retorted on Tuesday that "what the prime minister has said in that video is not true". Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, denied a visa by Washington, did not attend the session.

Oslo, September 25, 2026. When Benyamin Netanyahu began his speech at the UN General Assembly by saying that the "moral cowards" still present could leave now, the Norwegian delegation, led by Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide, remained seated. Aftenposten and VG report the same scene: in the New York hemicycle, dozens of delegations stood up and left the room before the Israeli Prime Minister even spoke, while the Norwegian delegation maintained, according to VG, "well-trained poker faces". In the balcony, the Israeli press and guests applauded and chanted slogans of support; downstairs, Netanyahu addressed a half-empty room, a scenario that VG now considers usual for his UN interventions.

The protocolary silence of Oslo does not mean approval. According to Aftenposten, Minister Espen Barth Eide later sharply criticized the speech. Netanyahu rejected the accusations of genocide in Gaza, where more than 73,000 people have died according to the toll cited by the newspaper, calling them the "biggest lie" and asking if a country committing genocide would allow humanitarian aid to enter. He claimed that Israel was protecting several of the countries whose delegates had just left.

On Iran, the Prime Minister presented the destruction of the nuclear program as "one of the easiest decisions" of his career. Aftenposten downplays the actual extent of the damage: IAEA inspectors have not returned to the sites, some of which are buried in mountains and could be largely intact, and Tehran has maintained for over twenty years that it is not seeking nuclear weapons, even if experts fear a change in position after the war. Netanyahu thanked Donald Trump and promised to "continue to win".

Lima, September 25, 2026. At the United Nations General Assembly podium on Thursday, the void left by the departure of dozens of delegations during Benjamin Netanyahu's speech occupies the Peruvian press more than the content of his speech itself. Gestión describes a room where "the exit of delegates left large empty areas" during one of the most anticipated speeches of the High-Level Week, and reports the phrase launched by the Israeli Prime Minister even before starting: "If there are other moral cowards who want to leave the room, let them do so now." The newspaper also notes, in the stands, sympathizers wearing kippas and pins with the Israeli flag, some chanting their support and applauding standing up.

Gestión mainly links the episode to the arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court against Netanyahu, for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity related to the Gaza offensive. The media reports the call of New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani to execute this warrant on the territory of his city; the official claims to have studied the available legal avenues, while recognizing that the jurisdiction belongs to federal authorities, not municipal ones.

On the sidelines of the UN enclosure, RPP Noticias documents a demonstration of about thirty people in an adjacent street, banners demanding a "free Palestine" and a costume comparing the Israeli leader to the devil. A Queens resident, identified as Meg, confides her "deep shame" towards an organization that, in her opinion, allows this "war criminal" to speak when an arrest warrant weighs against him. Another protester, Elle, believes that the institution should have detained him, in the name of the support it should give to the International Criminal Court. The day took place calmly, despite tense exchanges with pro-Israeli counter-protesters present on site.

Islamabad, September 25, 2026. The Pakistani press is not primarily focusing on Benyamin Netanyahu's speech at the UN podium, but rather on the brevity of his visit to New York: less than eight hours on site, compared to a week last year. The Israeli Prime Minister met with nine leaders, including five from Latin America, a region where Israel is seeking to establish ties as its traditional partners in Europe have distanced themselves since the Gaza war and the expansion of settlements in the West Bank. No meeting with an American official was announced, an absence noted by several Pakistani newspapers that republish, almost verbatim, the same agency dispatch.

Former Israeli Ambassador to Washington, Michael Oren, quoted in these articles, is blunt: "It's a campaign speech." He adds that such a speech would have benefited from a meeting with the American President, another leader, or at least the Secretary of State — "but apparently that's not the case." Oren says he can't recall a visit by an Israeli Prime Minister to the United States without a meeting with the President. The missed meeting comes a month before the Israeli legislative elections on October 27. Donald Trump, who has met Netanyahu eight times since the beginning of his second term, last saw him in July. The Prime Minister's office cites a tight schedule and the need to return before the Jewish holiday of Sukkot to explain the lack of additional meetings.

Warsaw, September 25, 2026. The Polish press details a speech by Benjamin Netanyahu marked by tension and names cited one by one before the UN General Assembly. On Thursday, the President of the Assembly, Khalilur Rahman, had to intervene several times to recall order, while delegations left the room. Netanyahu called them "moral cowards", assuring that in defending itself, Israel also protects the interests of many countries whose representatives had just left - and that some leaders thank him privately, off-camera, for the strikes against the Iranian nuclear program.

The Israeli Prime Minister targeted several specific targets. He accused New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani - who had called him a "war criminal" - of supporting Hamas, an accusation that RMF24 notes is not supported by facts. He denounced Western European leaders, accused of giving in to "anti-Semitic crowds". He targeted Qatar and Turkey, which he accuses of spreading false information about Israel; Qatar would have spent billions of dollars to "spread lies", including by funding American universities and media like Al Jazeera. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan was called a "tyrant", accused of imprisoning journalists, acting against the Kurds, and occupying northern Cyprus; Netanyahu responded directly to him on Jerusalem: "No, sir, you will not do it. It's our city."

Lisbon, September 25, 2026. The Portuguese press first retains the image of the emptying room: according to Observador, about 77 delegations left the UN General Assembly before Benyamin Netanyahu even took the floor on Thursday. The Israeli Prime Minister responded with a challenge: "If there are still moral cowards who have not left the room, let them do so now." He then qualified the accusation of genocide against Israel as "the greatest lie of the century", stating that destroying Iranian nuclear facilities had been difficult, but "one of the easiest decisions" of his term, adding: "If I hadn't done it, we would all be dead." SAPO notes that he also hailed Donald Trump as "the greatest partner" of Israel, and accused Qatar of spending billions to try to turn young people against Israel and the United States.

The most detailed response reported by the Portuguese media comes from Ankara. RTP reports that the Turkish government's communications director, Burhanettin Duran, deemed Netanyahu's attacks on Recep Tayyip Erdogan, whom he called a "tyrant", unfounded: according to Duran, they cannot "make us forget the massacres, the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza and the procedures initiated under international law". Netanyahu had accused Turkey of spreading "anti-Semitic lies", of illegally occupying northern Cyprus, of violating Greece's rights, and of wanting to govern Jerusalem, ensuring: "This is not your country, it's ours."

Doha, September 25, 2026. Qatar has "categorically rejected" the accusations made on Thursday by Israeli Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu at the United Nations General Assembly, where he claimed that Doha spent "billions" to spread "lies" about Israel. In a message posted on X, Majed Al Ansari, advisor to the Qatari Prime Minister and spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, denounced a "search for a scapegoat": "This ongoing rhetoric against Qatar is nothing but an attempt to divert attention from the atrocities committed by its government in the occupied Palestinian territories and their serious humanitarian consequences."

Al Ansari recalled the mediating role played by Doha between Israel and Hamas, praised by the international community, particularly in the negotiation of the ceasefire and the agreement on the release of captives concluded in 2025 — a role that the Israeli accusation, according to him, ignores. The spokesperson also noted that Israeli officials "are increasingly finding themselves speaking to empty rooms", adding that if Israel wanted to be perceived differently, it should "start by changing its policies, stop its violations of international law and respect it".

The empty seat of the Qatari delegation was part of a larger movement: dozens of delegations left the room when Netanyahu took the floor, at the call of the Palestinian mission to the UN. In front of the United Nations headquarters in New York, police arrested over a hundred protesters, including Oscar-winning actress Susan Sarandon, actress Hannah Einbinder, a Democratic candidate for Congress, and a member of the New York City Council.

Bucharest, September 25, 2026. The Romanian press sees Benyamin Netanyahu's speech at the UN podium as less of a diplomatic plea and more of an exercise in domestic politics. Digi24 presents it from the start as "an election campaign speech", delivered by a Prime Minister "engaged in a difficult campaign for his re-election", at a time when violence is escalating in the occupied West Bank, according to AFP cited by the media.

In a partially empty room on Thursday, following the call from the Palestinian mission to the UN, Netanyahu described the accusation of genocide as "the greatest lie of the century" and stated, according to Mediafax citing The Independent, that the attack on Iran was "one of the easiest decisions" he had ever made. He called the delegations that left "moral cowards": "If there are still moral cowards in this room who have not left, leave now", he said, according to Digi24.

The Prime Minister targeted several specific targets. He mocked the UK and France on colonialism: "They are the ones who invented the term, their colonies cover the entire planet", he said, according to G4Media. He described Turkish President Erdogan as a "tyrant" and Turkey as a "major propagator of anti-Semitic lies", and targeted New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani, accused of supporting Hamas. He also described extremist settlers as "young delinquents", accusing the international press of giving them disproportionate attention.

Stockholm, Friday, September 25, 2026. At the United Nations podium on Thursday evening, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu saw dozens of delegations leave the room before he even began speaking. The Swedish press describes a continuous flow of people queuing to exit while Netanyahu launched: "If there are other moral cowards who have not yet left the room, do so now" (Svenska Dagbladet). He then described the accusation of genocide against Israel as "the greatest lie of the century".

Netanyahu justified the war against Iran, stating that "we would all be dead" if Israel and the United States had not struck Iranian nuclear facilities, a decision he said was "the easiest" of his career as prime minister. Sveriges Radio reports that he called the departing delegates "cowards" (ynkryggar) before defending the war waged with Washington.

In Stockholm, diplomacy chooses procedural restraint rather than commenting on the substance of the accusation. Foreign Minister Maria Malmer Stenergard (Moderaterna) reacted to the departure of the delegations by writing that "all countries should be able to defend their position before the United Nations General Assembly" (Dagens Nyheter). No Swedish position on the substance of the speech appears in the consulted articles.

Singapour, 25 September 2026. At the United Nations General Assembly on Thursday, 24 September, Benjamin Netanyahu delivered a speech that the local press describes less as a diplomatic address than as an electoral rally transposed to the New York podium. The Straits Times recalls that the Israeli Prime Minister, struggling to stay in power in the 27 October election, took advantage of the global platform to attack both declared adversaries and traditional partners, including the United Kingdom, France, and Turkey.

Dozens of delegates left the room upon his arrival, some whistling and jeering, before Netanyahu called them "moral cowards" and told them to leave if they had not already done so. He accused Qatar and Turkey of funding disinformation campaigns against Israel and attacked New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, calling him "anti-Semitic" and claiming that since his election, many Jews no longer feel safe in the city. Mamdani, who had considered executing the International Criminal Court's arrest warrant against the Israeli leader before recognizing he did not have the authority, retorted that Netanyahu was repeating lies intended to whitewash his genocide of Palestinians.

Former Israeli Ambassador Michael Oren, quoted by The Straits Times, sums up the exercise: "He's not really addressing the UN, he's addressing the Israeli public." According to him, by attacking Mamdani and Iran, Netanyahu is trying to convince hesitant voters between him and his main rival, former military chief Gadi Eisenkot.

Ankara, September 25, 2026. At the United Nations General Assembly on Thursday, Benyamin Netanyahou compared the accusation of genocide against Israel to the "biggest lie of the century", claiming that his country had prevented a genocide in Gaza rather than committing one, citing food distribution and polio vaccination campaigns. The Turkish press first notes the almost empty room that welcomed him: according to Daily Sabah, dozens of delegations left the hemicycle as soon as the Israeli Prime Minister took the floor, leaving him to address a largely deserted Genel Kurul. The media emphasizes that the visit, which lasted less than eight hours, contrasts with the week-long stay of last year: no meeting with Donald Trump, no interview with Western European leaders, and even the scheduled meeting with Elon Musk was cancelled. Former Israeli Ambassador to Washington Michael Oren sees this as a blow to Netanyahou five weeks before the October 27 legislative elections; his counterpart Alon Liel judges that he has never seen such a humiliating visit by an Israeli Prime Minister to the UN.

Bianet and BBC Turkish focus on the words addressed to Turkey. Netanyahou ranked Ankara among the countries that spread a hostile discourse against Israel, calling Recep Tayyip Erdoğan a "tyrant", accusing him of hosting Hamas leaders, imprisoning journalists and opponents, and being responsible for the deaths of Kurdish civilians. He also reproached him for illegally occupying northern Cyprus and targeting Syria. The Israeli Prime Minister also called the delegates who left "moral cowards", assured that by striking Iran, Israel was also protecting some of the countries that left, whose leaders would thank him in private, and described this attack as one of the easiest decisions of his career.

Washington, September 25, 2026. The American press is focusing more on the New York controversy sparked by Benyamin Netanyahu than on the diplomatic content of his speech to the United Nations General Assembly. The Israeli Prime Minister called the accusation of genocide in Gaza "the biggest lie of the century," stating: "Israel did not commit genocide. Israel prevented a genocide," citing food aid and polio vaccination campaigns in the enclave, according to Time. Before even starting, he launched at the remaining delegations: "if there are other moral cowards who have not yet left this room, do it now," reports Fox News. CBS News recalls that the day before, European and Middle Eastern leaders — France, the United Kingdom, Jordan, Syria, Qatar, Turkey — had devoted part of their speaking time to denouncing Israel.

But it's his attack on New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani, labeled "New York's anti-Semitic mayor" and accused of "inciting riots against New York Jews," that dominates local coverage. Mamdani, quoted by Time, denies any support for Hamas. The mayor's camp was drawn into the proceedings: Congressional candidate Darializa Avila Chevalier, supported by Mamdani, was arrested in front of the UN among about 250 protesters, alongside city council members Chi Ossé and Alexa Avilés and actress Susan Sarandon, according to Fox News and NBC News.

Pretoria, Friday, September 25, 2026. At the United Nations General Assembly podium on Thursday, Israeli Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu described the accusation of genocide in Gaza as the "biggest lie of the century", claiming that Israel had not committed genocide but had prevented it. The South African press, which covered the speech through the lens of the already opened judicial proceedings against Israel, recalled that this accusation remains pending before the International Court of Justice, while Netanyahu himself is the subject of an arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court.

The Citizen reports that the ICC had estimated in 2024 that it had "reasonable grounds to believe" that Netanyahu bore responsibility for war crimes committed during the Gaza campaign, which was opened after the Hamas attack of October 7, 2023. Netanyahu disputes these findings.

On the diplomatic front, dozens of delegations left the room at the call of the Palestinian mission as soon as the Israeli leader took the floor, prompting jeers; he called them "moral cowards", saying: "If there are other moral cowards who have not left this room, let them do so now." His own supporters in the stands applauded and sang in Hebrew.