Netanyahu: No place in Iran long arm of Israel can't reach
Sept 28, 2024 15:42:39 GMT -5
Post by shalom on Sept 28, 2024 15:42:39 GMT -5
Netanyahu at UNGA: ‘No place in Iran the long arm of Israel cannot reach’
Israel’s prime minister chastises the United Nations, saying “enough is enough” of Hezbollah’s attacks on northern border cities and villages.
Mike Wagenheim
(Sep. 27, 2024 / JNS)
A defiant Benjamin Netanyahu told the U.N. General Assembly on Friday morning that he had a message for “the tyrants of Tehan: If you strike us, we will strike you,” adding that “there is no place in Iran that the long arm of Israel cannot reach, and that is true of the entire Middle East.”
Israel has been the target of heavy criticism throughout the week at the annual gathering of world leaders, purportedly due to its prosecution of the war against Hamas.
However, the Israeli prime minister, pointing to his maiden address as Israel’s U.N. ambassador some 40 years ago in which he defended Israel against a proposal to expel it from the organization, said on Friday that “there is nothing new at the United Nations.”
He accused the world body, which he referred to as an “anti-Israel Flat Earth Society,” along with member states, of attempting to strip Israel of its ability to defend itself. “If you can’t defend yourself,” he stated plainly, referring to the Middle East, “you can’t exist—not in our neighborhood.”
Ultimately, Netanyahu said the global diplomatic assault against Israel since Oct. 7 is “not about Gaza. It’s about Israel. It’s always been about Israel—Israel’s very existence.”
Dozens of diplomats left the General Assembly Hall as Netanyahu took to the podium. The Palestinians, Iranians and Saudis were among those who left their seats empty.
Netanyahu lamented on Friday how close Israel and Saudi Arabia were to normalization prior to the massacre by Hamas terrorists on Oct. 7. Much of Netanyahu’s 2023 speech to the General Assembly reflected the hope at that time that an agreement was within reach.
“This is an opportunity that we and the world should not let go by,” he said about the potential of further normalization with the Arab and Muslim world.
‘The Blessing and The Curse’
During his talk, he displayed two maps titled “The Blessing” and “The Curse,” respectively.
“The Blessing,” he said, represented a land bridge connecting the Middle East with Asia and Europe that would carry railways, energy pipelines and fiber optics—all possible through peace agreements that were close to being finalized before the events on Oct. 7.
Meanwhile, “The Curse” showed Iran’s footprint in the region.
“If you think this map is only a curse for Israel, you should think again,” said Netanyahu, adding that Iran’s aggression, unchecked, would have global implications since the Islamic Republic already funding terror networks on five continents.
He insisted that “we are winning” the six-front war organized by Iran while focusing on “mopping up” Hamas’s remaining capabilities in the Gaza Strip and on “our sacred mission, bringing the hostages home.”
He said he is in favor of a local administration in Gaza “committed to peaceful coexistence” taking over once Hamas’s rule is finished, though he did not specifically say he welcomed or barred the Palestinian Authority from playing a role.
His message to the captors of the remaining hostages—dead and alive—was brief. “Let them go,” he exclaimed, as he acknowledged the families of several hostages who had traveled with him to New York, relaying some of their stories to those in attendance.
Benjamin Netanyahu, UNIsraeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks during the 79th Session of the U.N. General Assembly at the headquarters of the United Nations in New York City on Sept. 27, 2024. Photo by Charly Triballeau/AFP via Getty Images.
Taking apart the terror chain of command
Left unanswered is the question of whether Netanyahu will accept the American and French-led effort to achieve a three-week ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah, which Netanyahu dubbed on Friday the “quintessential terror organization in the world,” which has “killed more Americans and Frenchmen than any group other than [Osama] bin Laden.”
After initially spurring the Biden-Macron proposal upon landing in New York on Thursday—a proposal that Washington apparently believed Netanyahu had accepted—the Israeli prime minister toned down his language on Friday, stating that he “shares the aim” of the proposal though stopped short of endorsing it.
Netanyahu told the General Assembly that Israel was taking apart Hezbollah’s chain of command, including their “replacements and the replacements of replacements.”
He asked rhetorically what the American government would do if El Paso and San Diego became ghost towns, as much of Israel’s north has become, due to the kind of incessant rocket and missile fire that Israel has endured from Hezbollah for nearly a year.
“How long would the American government tolerate it? I doubt it would do so for a single day,” said Netanyahu, adding that “enough is enough.”
link
Israel’s prime minister chastises the United Nations, saying “enough is enough” of Hezbollah’s attacks on northern border cities and villages.
Mike Wagenheim
(Sep. 27, 2024 / JNS)
A defiant Benjamin Netanyahu told the U.N. General Assembly on Friday morning that he had a message for “the tyrants of Tehan: If you strike us, we will strike you,” adding that “there is no place in Iran that the long arm of Israel cannot reach, and that is true of the entire Middle East.”
Israel has been the target of heavy criticism throughout the week at the annual gathering of world leaders, purportedly due to its prosecution of the war against Hamas.
However, the Israeli prime minister, pointing to his maiden address as Israel’s U.N. ambassador some 40 years ago in which he defended Israel against a proposal to expel it from the organization, said on Friday that “there is nothing new at the United Nations.”
He accused the world body, which he referred to as an “anti-Israel Flat Earth Society,” along with member states, of attempting to strip Israel of its ability to defend itself. “If you can’t defend yourself,” he stated plainly, referring to the Middle East, “you can’t exist—not in our neighborhood.”
Ultimately, Netanyahu said the global diplomatic assault against Israel since Oct. 7 is “not about Gaza. It’s about Israel. It’s always been about Israel—Israel’s very existence.”
Dozens of diplomats left the General Assembly Hall as Netanyahu took to the podium. The Palestinians, Iranians and Saudis were among those who left their seats empty.
Netanyahu lamented on Friday how close Israel and Saudi Arabia were to normalization prior to the massacre by Hamas terrorists on Oct. 7. Much of Netanyahu’s 2023 speech to the General Assembly reflected the hope at that time that an agreement was within reach.
“This is an opportunity that we and the world should not let go by,” he said about the potential of further normalization with the Arab and Muslim world.
‘The Blessing and The Curse’
During his talk, he displayed two maps titled “The Blessing” and “The Curse,” respectively.
“The Blessing,” he said, represented a land bridge connecting the Middle East with Asia and Europe that would carry railways, energy pipelines and fiber optics—all possible through peace agreements that were close to being finalized before the events on Oct. 7.
Meanwhile, “The Curse” showed Iran’s footprint in the region.
“If you think this map is only a curse for Israel, you should think again,” said Netanyahu, adding that Iran’s aggression, unchecked, would have global implications since the Islamic Republic already funding terror networks on five continents.
He insisted that “we are winning” the six-front war organized by Iran while focusing on “mopping up” Hamas’s remaining capabilities in the Gaza Strip and on “our sacred mission, bringing the hostages home.”
He said he is in favor of a local administration in Gaza “committed to peaceful coexistence” taking over once Hamas’s rule is finished, though he did not specifically say he welcomed or barred the Palestinian Authority from playing a role.
His message to the captors of the remaining hostages—dead and alive—was brief. “Let them go,” he exclaimed, as he acknowledged the families of several hostages who had traveled with him to New York, relaying some of their stories to those in attendance.
Benjamin Netanyahu, UNIsraeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks during the 79th Session of the U.N. General Assembly at the headquarters of the United Nations in New York City on Sept. 27, 2024. Photo by Charly Triballeau/AFP via Getty Images.
Taking apart the terror chain of command
Left unanswered is the question of whether Netanyahu will accept the American and French-led effort to achieve a three-week ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah, which Netanyahu dubbed on Friday the “quintessential terror organization in the world,” which has “killed more Americans and Frenchmen than any group other than [Osama] bin Laden.”
After initially spurring the Biden-Macron proposal upon landing in New York on Thursday—a proposal that Washington apparently believed Netanyahu had accepted—the Israeli prime minister toned down his language on Friday, stating that he “shares the aim” of the proposal though stopped short of endorsing it.
Netanyahu told the General Assembly that Israel was taking apart Hezbollah’s chain of command, including their “replacements and the replacements of replacements.”
He asked rhetorically what the American government would do if El Paso and San Diego became ghost towns, as much of Israel’s north has become, due to the kind of incessant rocket and missile fire that Israel has endured from Hezbollah for nearly a year.
“How long would the American government tolerate it? I doubt it would do so for a single day,” said Netanyahu, adding that “enough is enough.”
link
