Live: Netanyahu faces UN over Gaza as Abbas set to address assembly by video

LIVE Add Arena.im to your site 24/09/2026 - 05:11 Israel's Netanyahu expected to denounce enemies, allies with UN spotlight Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, facing a difficult reelection campaign at home, addresses the UN Thursday where he is expected to lash out at both enemies as well as allies that have crossed him in recent months. Ahead of his turn at the UN's signature diplomatic week, Netanyahu said he was going to "tell the truth about you," addressing New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani and accusing him of "supporting the Hamas terrorist monsters." He also baselessly accused Mamdani of "inciting riots against New York Jews." Mamdani recently vowed to execute an ICC arrest warrant when the visiting leader arrived in the city for the UN's signature gathering. The Hague-based International Criminal Court (ICC) said in 2024 it had reasonable grounds to believe Netanyahu was responsible for alleged war crimes in his Gaza campaign that responded to Hamas' deadly October 7, 2023 attacks. Mamdani, who has long supported Palestinian rights and accused Israel of war crimes, fired back Tuesday and said "we all know that what the prime minister has said in that video is not true." One of Netanyahu's fiercest critics, Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas, will not be in the room after Washington denied him a visa to attend. Erstwhile allies of Israel Britain and France will likely be in Netanyahu's firing line Thursday. Britain has imposed limited sanctions on Israeli exports from the occupied West Bank, a move France recently followed on. French President Emmanuel Macron drew Israel's ire for claiming Hamas was not active in the West Bank. Hamas' stronghold has traditionally been Gaza. 24/09/2026 - 05:07 Yesterday's key developments: Syria 's President Ahmed al-Sharaa told the UN Wednesday that the contested Golan Heights region would "remain Syrian" despite ongoing military occupation by Israel . Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian gave a defiant wartime address at the UN accusing the US of terrorism in his country and saying Iran would not "bend at the knee". Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky told the UN General Assembly that Russian President Vladimir Putin had enlisted fighters from 47 countries including North Korea, Ghana and India to fight against Ukraine . Leaders of some of the world's biggest AI companies urged caution at the United Nations, warning that increasingly autonomous systems could outpace human oversight. (FRANCE 24 with AFP, AP and Reuters)