Netanyahu’s UN Speech Was a Full-On Defense of Israeli Settlements
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was on the defensive when he took the stage at the United Nations General Assembly on Thursday. His country is facing growing condemnation from all sides: In September, 11 European countries and Canada announced a joint plan to sanction Israel’s West Bank settlements, and in 62 percent of Americans report […]
On Thursday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed the United Nations General Assembly, defending Israeli settlements in the West Bank. The speech came amid growing international condemnation of Israel's actions. In September, 11 European nations and Canada jointly announced plans to sanction Israel's West Bank settlements, while a recent Pew poll revealed that 62% of Americans held a negative view of Netanyahu's government.
Additionally, Netanyahu faces an arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court for alleged war crimes, including genocide. Protesters blocked streets outside the UN building hours before Netanyahu's speech, and half of the audience walked out before it even began. Despite the hostile reception, Netanyahu appeared determined to assert Israeli victory, thanking "great American friends" for their support in the "battle against the barbarians."
He claimed to have "delivered crippling blows to all [of Israel's] enemies," without specifying what those enemies were. The prime minister appeared particularly eager to defend settlers, describing them as "a handful of young juvenile delinquents," and asserting that only "maybe two, three" people had been killed by settlers. However, a UN report states that 81 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli settlers or soldiers in the West Bank this year alone, with at least 23 of those deaths resulting from settler attacks.
Netanyahu did not mention these killings as he claimed that there have been "thousands of terrorist attacks against the peaceful settlers, honorable people, law-abiding people." Palestinian residents in the West Bank, like Laith Shalabi, have witnessed an increase in violence and Israeli presence in recent years. Shalabi reported seeing more Israeli flags and soldiers on the route to his family's village, and settlers have engaged in violent acts against Palestinians, often in the presence of Israeli soldiers who either do not intervene or participate in the violence.
The US taxpayer funds these settlements to an estimated extent, as millions of dollars have been spent on the bombardment of Gaza, killing an estimated one-tenth of its population.
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