Israel’s ambassador to UN detained after leaving

General Assembly to protest Iranian president’s

speech
Raisi’s presence at UN General Assembly drew protesters outside hall
By Bradford Betz , Landon Mion Fox News
Published September 19, 2023 6:38pm EDT

Video
Israel's ambassador to UN leaves General Assembly to protest Iranian president’s speech
Gilad Erdan waved a picture of Mahsa Amini, whose murder by Iran's so-called morality police last year sparked waves of ongoing
protests.

United Nations security personnel on Tuesday detained Israel’s ambassador to the U.N.
shortly after he left the General Assembly Hall to protest a speech by Iranian President
Ebrahim Raisi.
It was not clear why he was being detained, though he was later released. Fox News Digital
has reached out to the U.N. for comment. The ambassador told Fox News Digital he was
detained with "unacceptable" brutality.

Before storming out of the General Assembly Hall, Gilad Erdan held up a picture of Mahsa
Amini, an Iranian woman who was brutally murdered last year by the country’s so-called
morality police for not properly wearing her hijab. Amini’s murder sparked waves of protest
across the Islamic Republic, which were met with brutal repression.
"The U.N.'s lost moral compass was on full display today," Erdan said in a statement to Fox
News Digital. "Being detained for standing with the Iranian people and protesting a vile mass
murderer who was given an audience on the global stage is utterly disgraceful. It is yet
another example of the strong bias Israel suffers at the U.N. Other ambassadors have
previously held signs for ideological reasons, including in recent sessions on the war in
Ukraine, with no repercussions. I will not be deterred and will always stand up for what is
right and just."

Israeli Ambassador to the U.N. Gilad Erdan was detained by security personnel Tuesday. (Fox News Digital)

A caption accompanying Erdan’s photo of Amini read: "Iranian women deserve freedom
now!"

Raisi’s presence at the U.N. General Assembly drew protesters outside the hall.

Erdan, who left the General Assembly Hall with the Israeli delegation, said the U.N. had
reached "a new moral low" by giving a platform to Raisi, who he derided as a "vile
murderer."
"While the butcher of Tehran is speaking at the UN and is being respected by the
international community, hundreds of Iranians are protesting outside, shouting and calling on
the international community to wake up and help them," Erdan said in a statement.

Iranian protesters voice outrage after the tragic death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini in 2022. (AP Photo/Markus
Schreiber, File)

"It is a disgrace that member states stay to listen to a mass murderer," he said. "It should not
be possible for a murderer with blood on his hands to receive a platform here at the U.N. I
left the speech to make it clear that the State of Israel stands by the Iranian people. I call on
the international community to stop the madness and prevent murderers and anti-Semites
from coming and speaking here at the U.N."

Erdan told Fox News Digital he wanted to draw the attention of the international community
to the "hypocrisy and the moral distortion" of the U.N. He said the organization was "founded
to prevent atrocities" but gave a platform to a "mass murderer who denies, distorts the
Holocaust and threatens to annihilate the Jewish people and is murdering his own people and
women and protesters."

"The U.N. listens to [Raisi] carefully while so many people are being murdered, killed, suffer
because of him and his ruthless regime," Erdan said.

"So I decided to show him and remind everyone the struggle of the Iranian women, and also
to remind the world and the Iranian people that they are not our enemies, that the people of
Israel support and stand in solidarity with them, whatever their regime is telling them and
lying to them about Israel," he continued. "This is not the truth. Israel is standing with the
people of Iran, and we want to live in peace with the people of Iran. But their regime is the
one who is preventing it and causing them to suffer so much."
Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi holds up the Quran as he addresses the 78th session of the U.N. General Assembly
in New York City on Sept. 19, 2023. (Reuters / Mike Segar)

Raisi’s speech at the U.N. General Assembly was laden with shots at the United States, which
he blamed for instability in the world.
"[A]s independent nations increasingly align themselves towards cooperation and
convergence, certain powers are attempting to incite conflicts in different regions employing
a Cold War mentality, they strive to reconstitute blocks on a global [scale]," Raisi said.

"This regressive endeavor poses a significant threat to the security and prosperity of nations.
The Islamic Republic of Iran staunchly maintains that the formation of a new East-West
divide should not be permitted to take shape."
Former President Trump sanctioned Raisi for his role in carrying out the massacre of 5,000
Iranian political prisoners in 1988 and the clerical regime’s slaughter of 1,500 Iranian
demonstrators in 2019.

Fox News’ Marta Dhanis and Benjamin Weinthal contributed to this report

SOURCE: https://www.foxnews.com/world/israels-ambassador-un-detained-leaving-general-
assembly-protest-iranian-presidents-speech

CRITICS:

1.Diplomatic Protocol: Critics may argue that diplomats should adhere to diplomatic protocol when
attending international forums like the UN General Assembly, and leaving to protest a speech could
be seen as a breach of that protocol.

2.Freedom of Speech: On the other hand, critics may also highlight the importance of freedom of
speech and expression, suggesting that the ambassador had the right to voice his protest in a
peaceful manner.

3.Escalation of Tensions: Some critics may express concerns that such actions could escalate tensions
between countries, especially when it involves sensitive geopolitical issues like the Israel-Iran
relationship.

4.Impact on Diplomacy: Detaining an ambassador could potentially impact diplomatic relations

between countries. Critics might argue that alternative ways of expressing dissent should be
explored to avoid jeopardizing diplomatic efforts.

5.Protests Outside the Hall: The presence of protesters outside the UN General Assembly during
President Raisi’s speech could be seen as a manifestation of freedom of speech, but it may also raise
questions about security and order during such international events