Video | Benjamin Netanyahu was booed as he began his speech at the UN General Assembly: delegations left the venue.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was booed on Friday, September 26, as he was preparing to begin his speech before the United Nations General Assembly in New York.

In protest against the war in the Gaza Strip, delegates from various countries, including Colombia, also stood up and left the room, so that by the time Netanyahu took the floor, the room was practically empty.

"It's an act of rejection of the genocide being committed in Gaza. It's a diplomatic, nonviolent act of expressing our discontent," said Colombian Foreign Minister Rosa Villavicencio upon leaving the venue.

As dozens of delegations left, other representatives loudly applauded the Israeli prime minister.

Reactions to Netanyahu's presence on the podium caused a brief moment of chaos, with the Assembly speaker repeatedly calling for order before the prime minister took the stage.

At the beginning of his speech, Netanyahu addressed accusations of genocide in Gaza and denounced "anti-Semitic lies." The minister also asserted that there is a "political and legal war against Israel" and criticized the "weak and needy leaders" who support it.

He also warned Hamas that it must lay down its weapons and stated that Israel will not rest until it returns the hostages held in the Palestinian enclave.

Netanyahu also stated that his country will not recognize a Palestinian state and said it will not commit "national suicide" by doing so.

"My position against a Palestinian state is the policy of the state and the people of the state of Israel," he explained, adding that doing so would be "rewarding the fanatics who supported" the October 7th attack, referring to the Hamas attack that killed more than 1,000 Israelis.

Netanyahu's presence at the UN General Assembly has sparked widespread reactions. This Friday, pro-Palestinian protesters called for a march from Times Square to the UN headquarters to reject the bombing of the Gaza Strip and mobilize against the Israeli prime minister.

This Thursday, it was also revealed that the Israeli prime minister's plane had to change its route to the United States to allegedly avoid crossing into countries that could carry out his arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court.

It is worth recalling that in November 2024, the ICC issued arrest warrants against the Israeli Prime Minister and his former Defense Minister, Yoav Gallant, as the main perpetrators of war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

Before his UN address, Netanyahu ordered his speech to be broadcast in the Gaza Strip via loudspeakers mounted on trucks on the Israeli side of the border.

According to the progressive Israeli daily Haaretz, citing two military sources, the measure was described as an act of "psychological warfare." Some officers, according to Haaretz, criticized the decision, calling it a "crazy idea" and questioning the military benefit of the action.

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