Netanyahu met with walkouts at UN, vows to continue Lebanon, Gaza wars

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed to continue fighting in Gaza and Lebanon as he spoke on the world stage at the UN General Assembly in New York on Friday, diminishing hopes for a ceasefire as casualties in Lebanon and Gaza continue to soar.

Netanyahu claimed that his country was "fighting for its life" and told world leaders he had come to the summit to correct "lies and slanders" he had heard from other speakers.

"I didn’t intend to come here this year. My country is at war fighting for its life," Netanyahu said. "But after I heard the lies and slanders levelled at my country by many of the speakers at this podium, I decided to come here and set the record straight.”

Dozens of diplomats led by Turkish representative Ahmet Yildiz walked out as Netanyahu came on stage in an apparent rebuff to his presence with the presiding officer having to call for order in the assembly. 

Families of hostages in Gaza were also in attendance at the address which came during the annual gathering of UN member states.

Last week, Israel launched what it called a "new phase" it its fight against Hezbollah in Lebanon which has seen its air force launch hundreds of strikes on the country since Monday. Over 700 people have been killed and thousands injured with the US and France calling for a ceasefire.

It came as the war in Gaza nears the one-year mark in what has been regarded as one of the bloodiest conflicts of the 21st century. At least 41,534 Palestinians have been killed and over 96,000 injured by the  Israeli army amid widespread accusations of ethnic cleansing and genocide.

The Israeli premier said his military would "continue degrading Hezbollah" to achieve its goals along the Lebanon border.

"Israel has every right to remove this threat and return our citizens to their home safely. And that’s exactly what we’re doing … we’ll continue degrading Hezbollah until all our objectives are met," Netanyahu said.

"Just imagine if terrorists turned El Paso and San Diego into ghost towns … How long would the American government tolerate that?" he said. "Yet Israel has been tolerating this intolerable situation for almost a year. Well, I’ve come here today to say: Enough is enough."

Netanyahu’s controversial address reportedly went over the allocated time as he went on using props and maps, including two titled 'The blessings' and 'The Evil' in an attempt to portray apparent regional threats facing Israel.

He also claimed that "every kitchen, every garage" in Lebanon hides Hezbollah weaponry, repeating a canard often used to justify Israel’s indiscriminate bombardment on civilian areas.

His address came a week after the General Assembly overwhelmingly passed a motion declaring Israel’s 57-year occupation of Palestinian territory unlawful, calling on Israel to withdraw within a year.

The Israeli premier accused the body of anti-Semitism for singling out Israel.

He insisted that Israel wanted peace but told Iran, "if you strike us, we will strike you," repeating oft-repeated Israeli claims that Iran was behind many of the problems in the region.

Before Netanyahu came on stage, the assembly heard from Slovenian Prime Minister Robert Golob and Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif who both made points of calling on Israel to halt the fighting.

Sharif said Gaza was "not just a conflict".

"This is systematic slaughter of innocent people of Palestine," he said to applause.

Large pro-Palestine and anti-war protests have been taking place all week in New York ahead of Netanyahu’s arrival, with reports of police arresting protesters who attempted to block the Israeli leader’s motorcade route through the city.

Jill Stein, the outspoken leader of the US's Green Party has called for Netanyahu to be arrested with the Israeli premier in New York to address the United Nations General Assembly.

"Netanyahu has no business at the United Nations. He belongs in the Hague. We need to arrest that bastard," Stein wrote on X on Thursday.

The Israeli leader’s appearance at the UN is his second trip abroad since the outbreak of war 12 months ago, both of which have been to the US.

The US is Israel’s oldest and closest ally and has signed off several billion-dollar worth military aid packages throughout the war in Gaza, despite concerns that Israel’s military could be committing war crimes with its indiscriminate bombing of civilian areas.