Benjamin Netanyahu Displays Two Maps at UNGA; Palestine Absent From Both (Watch Video)

Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, at the United Nations General Assembly in New York on Friday, displayed two maps of the Middle East, one showing a group of countries as 'The Curse' and another group as 'The Blessing'. The Curse map showed Iran, Iraq, Syria, and Yemen painted in black, and the Blessing map showed Egypt, Sudan, Saudi Arabia, and India painted in green.

On both maps, the most conspicuous was the complete removal of the Palestine state. There was no map of Palestine on the green "blessing" map or the black "curse" one. Netanyahu said the blessing map shows Israel and its Arab partners forming a land bridge connecting Asia and Europe between the Indian Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea.

Also Read | Israel continues to pound Beirut after deadly Hezbollah HQ strike.

"The Blessing map shows Israel and its Arab partners forming a land bridge connecting Asia and Europe between the Indian Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea," Netanyahu said at the UNGA.

Netanyahu Shows 2 Maps At UNGA To Woo Arab Nations

#WATCH | At the UNGA, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu displayed two maps showing a group of countries as 'The Curse' and another group as 'The Blessing'. 'The Curse' map showed Iran, Iraq, Syria and Yemen painted in black and 'The Blessing' map showed Egypt, Sudan,… pic.twitter.com/5UBO4TiBtV

— ANI (@ANI) September 28, 2024

Israeli PM said across this future bridge we will build rail lines, energy pipelines, and fibre optic cables, which will serve the betterment of 2 billion people. On the other hand, he showed the second map, named 'The Curse', alleging that it is an arc of terror Iran has created and imposed from the Indian Ocean to the Mediterranean. 

Netanyahu accused Iran, saying that the country has shut down international waterways and cut off trade, destroyed millions of nations from within, and inflicted misery on millions.

"On the one hand, there is a bright blessing, a future of hope and on the other hand, a dark future of despair is there. If you think this dark map is only a curse for Israel, then you should think again, because Iran's aggression, if it's not checked, will endanger every single country in the Middle East and many countries in the rest of the world because Iran seeks to impose its radicalism well beyond the Middle east. That's why it funds terror networks on five continents and builds ballistic missiles for nuclear warheads to threaten the entire world," he further added.

In his UNGA address, he blamed Iran for the violence in Lebanon, Syria and Yemen. He cited Tehran's financial and military support to Hezbollah in Lebanon, Hamas in Gaza, and the Houthis in Yemen as evidence of its destabilising influence. Israel, he argued, was defending itself on multiple fronts against Iranian-backed fighters across the region.

Also Read | UN releases US$10 million emergency humanitarian funds for Lebanon aid.

Meanwhile, several diplomats staged a walkout during Benjamin Netanyahu's speech at UNGA in protest against the ongoing genocide by the Israeli military in Gaza. As soon as he took the podium, diplomats from different countries exited the great hall of UNGA on Friday, which prompted the UN President to call for "order, please."

As half the @unitednations walks out on Bibi. We cheer him like never before!! @b.Netanyahu speech at the @unitednations. Bringing light to this morally lost and dark international body pic.twitter.com/8FP62oVt1G

— Rabbi Shmuley (@RabbiShmuley) September 27, 2024

The incident took place after a senior Hamas official urged world leaders to boycott Netanyahu's speech at the assembly. In his speech, Israel leader said he will continue to strike Hezbollah in Lebanon despite ongoing efforts by the US, European allies, and several Arab nations to broker a three-week cease-fire.