Facing down a mass walkout and mounting diplomatic pressure, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed Friday to “finish the job” as he defied growing isolation over his military’s devastating assault on the Gaza Strip.
Netanyahu was met by a mix of jeers and applause as he spoke to a half-empty room at the United Nations General Assembly in New York. He instead directed his address to Israeli hostages still held in Gaza, Hamas fighters battling his troops and the host of world leaders who have moved to recognize Palestine as a state.
He reserved praise for President Donald Trump, who told reporters moments after Netanyahu finished his speech: “I think we have maybe a deal on Gaza.” The president, who will meet with his close ally next week, offered little further detail on talks, which have frequently broken down in the past.
The United States has stood by Israel while a growing list of countries have condemned its offensive in the besieged Palestinian territory. Netanyahu also branded as “shameful” the decision by a wave of countries to formally recognize a Palestinian state.
He touted Israel’s military operations across the Middle East and vowed to press ahead with the assault on Gaza.
“The final remnants of Hamas are holed up in Gaza City,” the Israeli leader said of his military’s ground offensive in the famine-stricken area. “They vow to repeat the atrocities of Oct. 7 again and again and again. This is why Israel must finish the job.”
Netanyahu added that while “Western leaders may have buckled under the pressure,” he guaranteed that “Israel won’t.”
He spoke after scores of delegates walked out of the room as he approached the podium.
Netanyahu said his speech was being broadcast through loudspeakers across Israel’s border with Gaza, in hopes of reaching hostages who remain held in the enclave — and claimed it was being carried on cellphones of Palestinians across the territory after they were taken over by Israel’s intelligence services.
“We have not forgotten you, not even for a second. The people of Israel are with you,” Netanyahu said to the hostages, whose families have staged angry protests accusing him of endangering their loved ones by refusing to agree to a peace deal.
In a message to any Hamas members who might see the broadcast, he said, “Lay down your arms. Let my people go.”
“If you do, you will live. If you don’t, Israel will hunt you down,” he said.
Netanyahu also hit out during his speech at the string of countries that have moved to recognize Palestinian statehood in recent days, saying their “disgraceful decision” would “encourage terrorism against Jews and against innocent people everywhere.”
“It will be a mark of shame on all of you,” he said.
Netanyahu also rejected the growing condemnation of Israel, which sees his country facing the allegation of genocide before the International Court of Justice as well as from a growing number of experts and rights groups.
In a sign of that isolation the Israeli leader took an unusual route to New York, with his flight path appearing to avoid countries that could enforce an international arrest warrant against him for alleged war crimes in Gaza.
Israeli forces have ramped up their assault on Gaza City, forcing the displacement of hundreds of thousands of people while others stay put under near-daily deadly strikes.
In response countries including France and the United Kingdom have formally recognized Palestine as a state, leading Trump to issue a firm warning.
“I will not allow Israel to annex the West Bank. No, I will not allow it. It’s not going to happen,” Trump told reporters Thursday, having earlier privately assured Arab leaders on the subject.
Asked whether he had discussed the issue with Netanyahu, Trump said, “Whether I spoke to him or not, I did, but I’m not allowing Israel to annex the West Bank."
"There’s been enough. It’s time to stop now," he said.
Trump issued the rare admonishment after far-right members of Netanyahu's fragile government coalition called for the move.
Palestinians envision the West Bank as a key territory for an internationally recognized state, alongside Gaza and east Jerusalem. Annexation of the territory, which has been occupied by Israel since 1967, would further imperil that cause.
Trump also presented his 21-point plan for peace to Arab leaders, with his special envoy Steve Witkoff saying the meeting was “productive" and that a breakthrough could be imminent.
Tony Blair, the former British prime minister, is looking to play a senior role in running postwar Gaza under a peace plan, the Financial Times newspaper reported.
Blair's office declined to comment on the matter.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas was among the leaders to address the U.N. General Assembly, though he was forced to deliver his address by video after the U.S. last month revoked his visa, along with those of other Palestinian Authority officials.
In his video address on Wednesday, Abbas said Palestinians in Gaza “have been facing a war of genocide, destruction, starvation and displacement” by Israel, adding that “despite all what our people have suffered, we reject what Hamas carried out on the 7th of October.”
Abbas said Hamas would have “no role to play in governance” in the future he envisioned for Gaza.
That future is at stake in peace talks, and Netanyahu's address to world leaders comes as he continues to defy the mounting pressure from his closest ally and the families of hostages still held in Gaza to end the war.
