Netanyahu says Western countries ‘buckled’ in recognizing Palestinian state, as fiery UN speech prompts walkout

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu lashed out on Friday at Western countries’ recent recognition of Palestinian statehood, accusing world leaders of “buckling under the pressure of a biased media, radical Islamist constituencies and antisemitic mobs.”

Addressing the UN General Assembly in New York, Netanyahu rejected growing global criticism of Israel’s war in Gaza, stretching over almost two years, as “political and legal warfare against Israel.” He claimed the West is “appeasing your way out of jihad by sacrificing Israel.”

Days after France, Britain, Canada, Australia and other European countries recognized a Palestinian state, Netanyahu condemned the Palestinian diplomatic push as “shameful and disgraceful,” stating Western leaders are “giving the ultimate reward to intolerant fanatics who perpetrated and supported the October 7th massacre.”

Netanyahu’s combative speech was delivered to a relatively empty General Assembly plenum. In a sign of Israel’s growing international isolation, many delegations immediately walked out when he took the stage. But Netanyahu was undeterred and unapologetic on a stage on which he has spoken many times before. Between assailing Hamas, Iran and Western countries, Netanyahu lavished praise on US President Donald Trump, saying he “understands better than any other leader that Israel and America face a common threat.”

Always fond of visual aids at his UN speeches, Netanyahu began by holding up a small map of Iran and its proxies in the region, boasting about Israeli military achievements over the past year.

“We must remain absolutely clear minded and vigilant,” Netanyahu said of Iran’s nuclear program as he called for snapback sanctions against Tehran. “We must not allow Iran to rebuild its military nuclear capacities, stockpiles of enriched uranium.”

But Netanyahu’s loudest message wasn’t at the UN. Instead, it was in Gaza, where he had ordered the Israeli military to establish speakers to broadcast audio of his speech into the besieged territory.

“Our brave heroes, this is Prime Minister Netanyahu, speaking to you, live from the United Nations. We have not forgotten you, not even for a second,” he addressed the hostages in Hebrew and English, then warned Hamas that if it doesn’t release all 48 remaining hostages, “Israel will hunt you down.”

Netanyahu also said “special efforts” from Israeli intelligence were streaming the speech onto the phones of Gazans, but multiple Gaza residents told CNN they did not receive any message or streaming of the speech.

Many hostage families were unconvinced. Netanyahu read out names of hostages believed alive but didn’t include Tamir Nimrodi and Biffin Joshi. And he didn’t mention deceased hostages, angering the families’ forum who blamed him for “attempting to forgo the hostages and rewrite history.” Einav Zangauker, mother of hostage Matan, wrote on X: “While my Matan is being tortured in captivity, Netanyahu is using him at the UN. He is bombing my child and abusing the families.”

Of the remaining hostages in Gaza, only around 20 are believed to be alive.

Despite desperate pleas from hostage families and mounting international pressure to end the war, Netanyahu was firmly unapologetic for the war in Gaza after nearly two years and vowed to continue until Hamas was destroyed. “The final elements, the final remnants of Hamas, are holed up in Gaza City. They vow to repeat the atrocities of October 7 again and again and again, no matter how diminished their forces. That is why Israel must finish the job. That is why we want to do so as fast as possible,” Netanyahu said.

Netanyahu’s apparent insistence on continuing the war contrasted sharply with Trump, whose administration has put forward a ceasefire proposal as the president said the end of the war could be “very close.”

The Trump administration’s proposed 21-point Gaza peace plan calls for all of the hostages to be released within 48 hours of agreement in exchange for a phased withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza, according to a source familiar with the proposal that was shared with Arab leaders earlier this week.

It is unclear if Hamas has been presented with the proposal, which could have undergone revisions in subsequent days and may still be tweaked. It would likely be relayed through the Qataris to what remains of the team in Doha.

According to the source familiar, there is not a timeline associated with the withdrawal of Israeli forces in that version of the plan.

The version of the plan presented to Arab leaders specifically says Israel will not attack Qatar again, the source said Friday. It also says there cannot be forced displacement from Gaza.

It calls for no future role for Hamas in governance in Gaza, the source said, and for two levels of interim governance – an overarching international body and a Palestinian committee.

There is no timeline for an interim government to phase leadership over to the Palestinian Authority, a possibility Netanyahu has repeatedly rejected.

The proposal references the UN role in providing humanitarian aid and makes no mention of the controversial Gaza Humanitarian Foundation. It does not say the US would support a Palestinian state; rather it recognizes that this is an aspiration of Palestinians.

Arab leaders are broadly on board with the plan although they don’t think it’s perfect. They want to see an end to the conflict as quickly as possible, the source said.

Trump struck an optimistic note Friday, telling reporters he thought negotiators were “very close to a deal on Gaza.” He is expected to meet Netanyahu on Monday.

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