Netanyahu on “Evil Iranian Axis,” “Finishing the Job,” Two-State Recognition, and “Eliminating Hamas”

United Nations

Sphinx News: Ahmed Ali

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s speech to the General Assembly was met with walkouts by several member state delegates before he even began. Wanted by the ICC, the Israeli leader addressed the Assembly ahead of the institution’s 80th anniversary.

Netanyahu’s remarks covered a wide range of topics, beginning with the recent 12-day war against Iran, which his administration called Operation Rising Lion. The operation, aimed at “dismantling Iran’s nuclear program,” targeted what he called the “terror axis.” Netanyahu alleged the nuclear program was designed “only to destroy Israel.”

He added that this would not be Israel’s only military campaign since his last address in September 2024. The Prime Minister stated:
“So what’s happened over the past year? We’ve hammered the Houthis, including yesterday. We crushed the bulk of Hamas’s terror machine. We crippled Hezbollah, taking out most of its leaders and much of its weapons arsenal, and we devastated Iran’s atomic weapons and ballistic missile programs.”

In carrying out these operations, Netanyahu asserted that Israel had “removed an existential threat and a mortal threat to the civilized world,” adding, “the battle is not over. And tomorrow, UN Security Council sanctions on Iran must be snapped back.”

The second part of Netanyahu’s address focused on Hamas, which he said are “holed up in Gaza City, vowed to repeat the atrocities of October 7th.” He declared that operations in Gaza City and across the Gaza Strip would continue, calling them essential to rescuing the “48 remaining living hostages.” He went on to say he had “surrounded Gaza with massive loudspeakers connected to this microphone,” to send a message to the hostages’ captors:
“Hamas leaders, and to the jailors of our hostages, I now say: Lay down your arms. Let my people go! Free the hostages! All of them.”

Netanyahu further claimed that the war against the “Iranian axis of evil” was a war against terror on behalf of the entire world, declaring: “Our enemies hate all of us with equal venom. They want to drag the modern world back to the past…. You know deep down that Israel is fighting your fight.”

He then turned to condemn Western states that recently recognized Palestinian statehood. Referring back to October 7th, when he said Western allies once claimed “Israel is doing the dirty work for all of us,” he sharply criticized what he described as a reversal of position. Netanyahu called those governments “weak,” and described their decision as both “shameful and regrettable,” arguing that former allies had “buckled under pressure of a biased media, radical Islamist constituencies, and antisemitic mobs.” He added:
“There’s a familiar saying: when the going gets tough, the tough get going. Well, for many countries here, when the going got tough, you caved!”

He labeled the move by these “weak-kneed leaders” as a “reward for terrorism,” warning: “You can’t appease your way out of Jihad. You won’t escape the Islamist storm by sacrificing Israel.”

Netanyahu concluded by rejecting accusations that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza or deliberately starving its population. Instead, he claimed, “the opposite is true, Israel is applying more measures to minimize civilian casualties than any military in history.” He further insisted Israel is deliberately providing aid to Gaza, dismissing criticisms of his administration as “anti-Semitic.”

With a defiant tone, Netanyahu reiterated his refusal to “reward the corrupt PA with a Palestinian state,” arguing that every past offer of statehood was rejected by the Palestinians, who instead sought to “erase Israel and establish a purely Palestinian state.”

Looking ahead, Netanyahu said Israel had begun serious talks with Syria: “Today, we have begun serious negotiations with the new Syrian government. I believe an agreement can be reached that respects Syria’s sovereignty and protects both Israel’s security and the security of the minorities in the region, including the Druze minorities.” He also suggested peace with Lebanon was possible if its government committed to “the complete disarmament of Hezbollah.”

Finally, Netanyahu declared that Israel would continue to “defend itself,” adding that “Victory over Hamas will make peace possible with nations throughout the Arab and Muslim world.”