“There is no place in Iran where the long arm of Israel cannot reach. And the same goes for the Middle East,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned at the 79th session of the UN General Assembly, from which representatives of many countries were absent in protest when the Israelis spoke. “If you attack us, we will attack you,” he directly threatened Tehran, which he accuses of being behind the attacks by the Palestinian group Hamas and Lebanese Hezbollah.
Even though the room was half empty, Netanyahu had a group of supporters who applauded his every statement and filled the void created in the large room.
Netanyahu began by saying he should not have gone to New York this year because his country “is at war and fighting for its life,” but added that he decided to go because refute the lies and accusations made against him and his government.
As he has done at other annual events at United Nations headquarters, he showed two cards: one reading “the blessing” and another with the title “the curse.” “Which of these two cards will shape our future?” he asked, explaining that Israel had been working for some time on the scenario posed by the blessing: reaching agreements with the Arab countries of the Persian Gulf and becoming thus “a bridge”. between Asia and Europe. The other scenario, in black, represents the so-called “Axis of Resistance” led by Iran, which includes, among others, Syria, pro-Iranian militias in Iraq, Hezbollah and Yemen’s Houthi rebels.
The prime minister defended the offensive launched this week by the Israeli army against Lebanon, while the plane continues to bomb “terrorist targets” of the Shiite group Hezbollah in the south and east of the country, where some 700 people have died since Monday. by Israel’s attacks. “As long as Hezbollah chooses the path of war, Israel will have no alternative and Israel has every right to eliminate this threat,” Netanyahu insisted. “We face enemies who seek our annihilation and we must defend ourselves against these savage murderers,” he argued.
“We will not accept that another terrorist group [Hizbulá] be placed on our northern border so that it can carry out another attack,” the Israeli leader said, referring to the October 7 attack launched by Hamas from the Gaza Strip against southern Israel. Netanyahu remembers the 250 people kidnapped by Hamas almost a year ago, around 100 of whom are still detained in Gaza. “We are not going to stop until we have accomplished our mission: to bring the hostages home,” he promised.
He assured that the war in Gaza “can end now”: “All Hamas has to do is surrender, give up their weapons and release the hostages. » He also clarified that his troops have eliminated 23 of Hamas’ 24 battalions, but that they will not stop until “total victory” in the Gaza Strip.
