Netanyahu rages against critics, including Mamdani, at the U.N. General Assembly

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu holds up a Starlink satellite internet dish as he speaks during the 81st session of the U.N. General Assembly at United Nations headquarters on Thursday. Seth Wenig/AP hide caption

Protesters rallied outside the United Nations building in New York and many delegates inside walked out of the room as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gave a fiery address to the General Assembly, denying allegations of genocide and slamming his critics, including the city's mayor, Zohran Mamdani.

He called allegations of Israeli genocide in Gaza "the biggest lie of the century" and defended attacking Iran alongside the U.S., calling it "one of the easiest decisions I've ever had to make." He added: "if we hadn't done it, we'd all be dead."

In his Thursday speech, he lashed out against the protesters outside — who included Hollywood stars Susan Sarandon and Hacks actress Hannah Einbinder, both detained during the anti-Netanyahu protest — calling them "phony" and asking why they hadn't all protested when Iranian security forces killed thousands of demonstrators in January.

He also berated the dozens of U.N. delegates who walked out when he started his speech, calling them "moral cowards."

Netanyahu then attacked Mayor Mamdani, who has called him a war criminal and pushed for federal authorities to act on the International Criminal Court-issued arrest warrant for him.

The Israeli leader called Mamdani, New York's first Muslim mayor, "antisemitic."

"Mr. Mamdani, you tried to stop me from coming here. You tried to silence me. Well, you can't silence me, and you can't silence the truth," Netanyahu said in his speech.