Key points: Dozens of delegates demonstratively walked out of the hall. A direct ultimatum to Hamas. Harsh criticism of the West for recognizing Palestine.
Benjamin Netanyahu walked to the podium of the UN General Assembly on September 26, 2025, to the accompaniment of slamming doors and the stampeding of departing delegations. Dozens of member state representatives demonstratively walked out of the chamber, leaving gaping empty seats behind them—a symbolic image of the international community’s division over the Middle East. But the Israeli prime minister seemed prepared for such a reception. Moreover, he turned this dramatic scene into a springboard for one of the most forceful speeches in the history of the UN podium.
“This axis threatened world peace. It threatened the stability of our region and the very existence of my country, Israel,” Netanyahu began his speech, unfurling a map of what he called the “axis of terror,” led by Iran, before the remaining audience. And if a year ago this map had been a warning, now the prime minister delivered a progress report that sounded like a military report from the battlefields of an invisible Third World War. The Israeli leader turned the list of victories into a veritable theatrical performance. “Remember those pagers?” he addressed the audience with a victorious grin. “We paged Hezbollah. And believe me, they got the message—thousands of terrorists fell to the ground.” Laughter from some and indignant cries from others echoed through the hall. The phrase instantly went viral on social media, sparking a wave of memes and a heated debate about the limits of diplomatic language. But the real explosion of emotion occurred when Netanyahu addressed a topic that has divided the West: the recognition of a Palestinian state by several European countries.
“Giving the Palestinians a state a mile from Jerusalem after October 7th is like giving al-Qaeda a state a mile from New York after 9/11,” he slammed into the faces of representatives of France and the United Kingdom. These countries, which had recently recognized Palestine, were now the target of direct accusations of “madness” and “a disgrace that will fuel terrorism against Jews and innocent people around the world.” Hamas received a personal message, delivered by Netanyahu, looking directly into the camera, knowing his words would be broadcast over loudspeakers on the Gaza border and sent directly to the cellphones of the group’s leaders. “Lay down your arms, free my people, and release the hostages. If you do this, you will live; if not, Israel will persecute you.” This wasn’t a diplomatic demarche, but a direct ultimatum, delivered from the podium of an organization created for the peaceful resolution of conflicts. The prime minister dismissed the accusations of genocide leveled against Israel and pending before the International Court of Justice with undisguised contempt. “What country committing genocide would beg its population to leave the dangerous areas of Gaza? Did the Nazis ask the Jews to leave?” he asked, waving statistics about two million tons of food delivered to the enclave. According to him, the famine in Gaza is the result of Hamas theft, not the Israeli blockade. “We are doing the West’s dirty work,” Netanyahu snapped, referring to the fight against the Iranian threat.
The Iranian theme was the highlight of the speech. “We have destroyed Iran’s nuclear weapons and ballistic missile programs,” the prime minister declared, despite international observers claiming Tehran has stockpiled approximately 400 kilograms of highly enriched uranium enriched to 60%—close to weapons-grade levels. The IAEA cannot confirm the exclusively peaceful nature of Iran’s nuclear program, and inspectors’ access to a number of sites has been restricted since 2021. In his speech at the same session, the UN Secretary-General emphasized the need to return to the two-state solution “before it is too late”—a position diametrically opposed to Netanyahu’s. Hamas called the Israeli prime minister’s speech “a series of blatant lies and contradictions,” while the Greek representative called for a ceasefire and large-scale humanitarian aid to Gaza. The finale of the speech was the apotheosis of the drama. Some of the spectators on the balcony gave a standing ovation, while the remaining delegations sat in deathly silence.
After his speech, Donald Trump cryptically declared, “It looks like we have a deal on Gaza,” without providing further details. Netanyahu’s UN speech in 2025 will go down in history as the moment when diplomatic protocol was cast aside, and words more suited to a military headquarters than the halls of an international organization were delivered from the podium. It was the speech of a leader who came not to seek compromises, but to deliver ultimatums. And the empty seats in the General Assembly hall became a silent but eloquent response from a significant portion of the international community to this position.