Netanyahu's UN Speech Sparks International Backlash

Hamas reportedly drafted a letter, carried by Qatari intermediaries, offering to free roughly half of the remaining hostages in Gaza in exchange for a 60‑day ceasefire; Qatari intermediaries intended to deliver it to the White House but U.S. officials said the administration had not received it and said it would reject any offer short of the immediate release of all hostages. At the U.N. General Assembly, more than 150 member states backed a “New York Declaration” calling for an immediate ceasefire, full release of hostages and a time‑bound roadmap to a two‑state solution, even as Israeli forces pushed deeper into Gaza City with tanks and airstrikes, causing dozens of civilian deaths, mass evacuations and a worsening humanitarian crisis. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu delivered a combative, roughly 40‑minute speech at the Assembly that drew large walkouts and left the hall largely empty; he forcefully rejected recent unilateral recognitions of a Palestinian state, vowed Israel would “finish the job” against Hamas unless all hostages were released, denied accusations of genocide and accused critics of “lawfare.” Netanyahu used theatrical props — including a QR code and claims his speech was broadcast into Gaza — to make his case, and Hamas called the address “blatant lies and contradictions” while reiterating demands for a ceasefire, withdrawal and recognition of Palestinian statehood. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas condemned Hamas’s Oct. 7 attack at the U.N. and urged the group to surrender its weapons. An emerging coalition of states (the Hague Group) urged concrete legal and economic measures to isolate Israel and to block transfers of weapons and dual‑use goods, saying the international community has a duty to prevent genocide and underscoring deepening global divisions over the Gaza war.