Netanyahu Calls Erdoğan a “Tyrant” at UN, Citing Cyprus and Greece

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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu launched a sharp attack on Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan from the UN General Assembly podium, calling him a “tyrant” and accusing Turkey of illegally occupying part of Cyprus and systematically violating international law against Greece.

The remarks came during a 40-minute address that also covered Iran, Hamas, Gaza and Israel’s alliance with the United States. Israeli media highlighted the comments on Cyprus and Greece.

The speech followed Netanyahu’s meeting hours earlier with Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis on the sidelines of the Assembly. The two discussed regional developments, energy cooperation and plans for a new Greece–Cyprus–Israel trilateral summit.

“He is a tyrant”

On Erdoğan, Netanyahu said: “He is a tyrant. He also hosts the leaders of the terrorist organization Hamas. He has killed thousands of Kurdish civilians. He denies the Armenian Genocide, jails journalists and opposition leaders. In fact, I think he holds the world record on this.”

He continued: “He illegally occupies Cyprus, which is a member of the European Union, and systematically violates international law against Greece, which is a member of NATO. Now he wants to take over Syria. He says he will become the ruler of Jerusalem. No, sir, that is not going to happen.”

Walkouts and Iran

Dozens of delegations walked out before or during the speech. Netanyahu responded: “If there are any other cowards, let them leave now.” Those who remained applauded.

He defended Israeli strikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities, arguing that without them “we would all be dead.” Israel, he said, also defends countries whose envoys had left the hall, and claimed other leaders had privately thanked him for the strikes.

He rejected French and British accusations of Israeli colonialism. “They accuse Israel — tiny Israel — of colonialism. What colonialism?” he asked, adding that Britain and France “invented the term” and once held colonies “across the entire planet.”

October 7, Gaza and Trump

Netanyahu called October 7 “the darkest day in Israel’s history,” accusing Hamas of murdering about 1,200 Israelis and of killings, rape and arson. Enemies expected Israel to collapse, he said; instead “we fought like lions” on “seven fronts” for three years. He recalled his brother Yoni, killed at Entebbe, and a wartime line: “He told me we would win. We have no other choice.”

He named Donald Trump Israel’s strongest ally “in this battle against the barbarians,” thanking him for “courageous leadership” and saying the Iran strikes aimed at “saving civilization.”

He also described an “eighth front”: the fight for truth in media and on social platforms. He accused Qatar of funding U.S. universities, media and Al Jazeera for decades to turn young people against Israel, the United States and the West.

On Gaza, he said Hamas uses civilians as “human shields” and hospitals, schools and mosques as command centers, while Israel tried to move civilians away from combat zones.

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