New York: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu address the General Debate of the 79th Session of the UN General Assembly on Friday, where delegates from other countries walked out of the hall in protest of the controversial leader. The heightened tensions came amid Israel's devastating military campaigns in Lebanon and Gaza against Iran-backed proxies Hezbollah and Hamas respectively.
Many delegations attending the UNGA expressed their support for a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip by walking out during Netanyahu's speech, and leaders of some countries directly demanded an immediate ceasefire from Israel in their speeches. However, the Israeli Prime Minister also received a resounding applause from his supporters as he vowed to eliminate Hamas and "further degrade" Hezbollah until "total victory".
Slovenian Prime Minister Robert Golob said the situation in the Middle East is "at the brink of an abyss," and he urged Israel to end the war immediately. "I want to say this out loud and clear to the Israeli government: Stop the bloodshed, stop the suffering, bring the hostages home and end the occupation. Mr Netanyahu, stop this war now," said Golob.
Jordan's foreign minister Ayman Safadi also spoke on the same lines, saying Netanyahu had to be stopped because he was driving the region to a full-fledged war after Netanyahu targeted Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah. "It is time to face the truth, and the truth is, unless Netanyahu is stopped, unless this government is stopped, war will encompass all of us," Ayman Safadi told reporters ahead of a UN Security Council meeting on Gaza.
Netanyahu's warning to Iran
The Israeli PM squarely blamed Iran for the conflict unfolding in the Middle East and vowed to continue battling the Lebanese Hezbollah and defeat Hamas in the Gaza Strip until “total victory.” He also promised to "degrade Hezbollah until all our objectives are met" while asserting Israel's right to facilitate the return of its citizens to their homes.
He also warned “tyrants of Iran” that Israel will hit back if Tehran does so. “There is no place in Iran where the long arm of Israel cannot reach,” he said in a stern message. "Israel will win this battle. We will win this battle because we don't have a choice. After generations in which our people were slaughtered, were mercilessly butchered, and no one raised a finger in our defence. We now have a state, a brave army and we are defending ourselves," Netanyahu added.
He also presented two maps of the region - one was called 'The Blessing", which included countries Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Sudan and even India painted in green. The other map was labelled as "The Curse" showing Syria, Iraq, Iran and Yemen painted in black.
Hassan Nasrallah killed in Israeli strike: Army
This came as Israel stepped up its airstrikes on Lebanon as a wave of air raids hit Beirut, unleashing attacks on the Iran-backed militant outfit Hezbollah’s headquarters that apparently targeted its head Hassan Nasrallah. After hours of uncertainty, the Israel Defence Forces said Nasrallah, who led Hezbollah for 32 years, was killed along with Ali Karki and other commanders of the group.
https://twitter.com/Israel/status/1839939956854132917
"The Hezbollah terrorist organisation, headed by Hassan Nasrallah, joined the Hamas terrorist organization in its war against the State of Israel on October 8th. Since then, Hezbollah has been continuing its ongoing and unprovoked attacks on the citizens of the State of Israel, dragging the State of Lebanon and the entire region into a wider escalation,” said the IDF in a statement.
Nasrallah's death would be a devastating blow for the Iran-backed group in Lebanon, which has suffered several casualties in the escalating conflict with Israel that has claimed over 800 lives in the past week and is expected to dramatically increase chances of a full-blown war in the Middle East.
(with agency input)
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