DOMINANT ANGLE
Abuja retains the image of an almost empty hemicycle and a Netanyahu labeling the departed delegates as "moral cowards", more than the substance of the genocide accusation that he rejects as "the greatest lie of the century".
Dominant angle identified — does not reflect unanimity of this country’s media
KEY POINTS
- 01
Netanyahu called the genocide accusation the "biggest lie of the century" before a room emptied by dozens of delegations, according to Premium Times.
- 02
He presented the strike against Iranian nuclear facilities as "one of the easiest decisions" of his career, stating: "Because if we hadn't done it, we'd all be dead" (Punch, Daily Post).
- 03
New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani, who Netanyahu called "antisemitic", had threatened to execute an arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court against him before acknowledging he did not have the authority (Vanguard, Punch).
ANALYSIS
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.
SOURCES (4)
- Punch NigeriaMEDIUM
- Daily Post NigeriaMEDIUM
