UNITED NATIONS/JERUSALEM - When Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu began to deliver his speech during the general debate of the 80th session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) on Friday, many delegates walked out of the UNGA hall in protest.

In his address, Netanyahu criticized those countries announcing their recognition of the State of Palestine over the past few days, saying: "You know what message the leaders who recognized a Palestinian state this week sent to the Palestinians? It's a very clear message. Murdering Jews pays off."

France, Britain, Portugal, Australia and Canada are among Western nations that have recently recognized the State of Palestine in support of the two-state solution over the past few days. So far, more than 150 UN member states have recognized Palestine.

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Scores of delegates walked out of the General Assembly hall in protest when Netanyahu took the stage. He was booed by some delegates, but was applauded by some others.

In his speech, Netanyahu accused the Palestinians of not believing in the two-state solution. "They never have. They don't want a state next to Israel. They want a Palestinian state instead of Israel."

He also alleged that "the persistent Palestinian rejection of a Jewish state in any boundary is what has driven this conflict for over a century."

The Israeli prime minister claimed that his opposition to a Palestinian state "is not simply my policies or my government's policy. It's the policy of the state and people of the state of Israel".

Addressing world leaders via video link on Thursday, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said the Palestinian Authority had recognized Israel's "right to exist" as early as 1988 and again in 1993.

"I speak to you today after almost two years in which our Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip have been facing a war of genocide, destruction, starvation and displacement," Abbas said, adding that the genocide has been "waged by the Israeli occupation forces in which they killed and injured more than 220,000 Palestinians."

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Abbas condemned the Oct 7, 2023 Hamas attack on Israel, saying those actions "do not represent the Palestinian people, nor their just struggle for freedom and independence".

Abbas extended thanks to the countries that recently recognized Palestinian statehood, and the people and organizations around the world who protested in support of the rights of the Palestinian people, adding, "We reject confusing the solidarity with the Palestinian cause and the issue of antisemitism, which is something that we reject."

Earlier this month, the UNGA adopted a draft resolution endorsing the New York Declaration on the Peaceful Settlement of the Question of Palestine and the Implementation of the Two-State Solution. The declaration, circulated at a high-level international conference held at the United Nations in late July, sets out an action-oriented pathway toward a peaceful settlement of the Israel-Palestine conflict and the realization of the two-state solution.

Israel plays Netanyahu's UN speech to Gazans

Meanwhile, the Israeli army and civilian bodies placed huge loudspeakers on trucks along the Gaza Strip and remotely took control of Gaza residents' mobile phones to play live Netanyahu's speech.

A statement from the Israeli prime minister's office said the loudspeakers were placed only on the Israeli side. However, several Israeli media outlets quoted military sources as saying that the loudspeakers were brought into the Gaza Strip, including Gaza City.

Another statement from the prime minister's office said the Israeli army remotely took control of Gaza residents' mobile phones to broadcast the speech live on the devices.

The Israeli military operations in Gaza and Lebanon continued. According to statements from the Israel Defense Forces, their air force targeted a Hezbollah military site in Lebanon and conducted strikes on over 140 targets within the Gaza Strip during the past 24 hours.

Devastating to civilians

The latest Israeli attacks in northern Gaza, reportedly killing or injuring dozens, are having "an appalling impact on civilians enduring suffering and starvation", said Stephane Dujarric, spokesman for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.

"We condemn the deadly escalation of the Israeli military offensive, which we saw over the weekend across Gaza City," said Dujarric. "We reiterate our call for the protection of civilians and humanitarian personnel, and full respect for international law."

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said thousands of displaced people fled heavy strikes and bombardment across the city on heavily congested Al Rashid Road, the only route available to the south.

Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini of the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East said on Sunday that in the previous four days, 10 of the agency's Gaza City buildings were hit, including seven schools and two clinics used as shelters for thousands of the displaced.

He warned that as airstrikes in Gaza City and the broader northern Gaza intensify, exhausted and terrified civilians are displaced yet again.

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OCHA said that partners monitoring the exodus reported nearly 70,000 people heading south, primarily to Deir al-Balah and Khan Younis. In the past month, they observed about 150,000 movements from north to south.

The World Food Programme said that forced displacement from Gaza City exhausts families' resources and disrupts their last lifelines. Without safe, sustained access, the risk of worsening hunger grows, especially for children.

OCHA said the cost of fleeing to the south has increased, to as much as $1,600, forcing many to stay put.

High-rise building in Gaza City struck

Also on Friday, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said it struck a high-rise building in Gaza City, which it claimed contained Hamas lookout posts to coordinate and execute attacks against IDF troops in the area.

In a statement, the IDF said it has issued advance warnings to the population and used precision-guided munitions, aerial surveillance, and additional intelligence gathering to minimize civilian harm.

Meanwhile, the non-governmental medical aid group Doctors Without Borders (MSF) said it was forced to suspend lifesaving medical activities in Gaza City "due to the rapidly deteriorating security situation," including "continued (Israeli) airstrikes and advancing tanks less than one kilometre from our healthcare facilities."

"This is the last thing we wanted, as the needs in Gaza City are enormous, with the most at-risk people -- infants in neonatal care, people with severe injuries and life-threatening illnesses -- unable to move and in grave danger," the MSF said Friday in a statement.