Azmat Ali
‘ORDER in the hall,’ came the plea from a UN official on 26 September, as scores of delegates walked out of the United Nations General Assembly in protest against the genocide in Gaza. The chamber was left hollow, rows of empty seats glaring back at Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as he began his address to the world.
The paradox was striking. As Netanyahu spoke to a vacated hall in New York, his government had loudspeakers installed along Gaza’s borders, broadcasting his words into a territory scarred by bombardment and siege. His office claimed Israeli forces even commandeered phones inside Gaza to stream his speech. In a strip where more than 65,000 Palestinians have been killed and 90 per cent displaced, the voice of the Israeli premier reverberated across rubble and tents.
In Wadi Gaza, some listened. “Whether he likes it or not, sooner or later, the Palestinian people will gain independence,” said Moneir Talib, displaced from Gaza City. Others responded with exhaustion. “We are psychologically, physically, morally and financially tired from everything,” said Amjad Abdel Daiym.
Outside the UN, protests filled New York’s streets. Thousands massed in Times Square, waving Palestinian flags and chanting “genocide.” Inside, the silent rebukes were equally symbolic: Iran placed photos of children killed in Israeli strikes on its desk; the US and UK sent only low-level diplomats. Netanyahu’s speech was met not with applause but with absence.
Days earlier, Netanyahu himself had admitted Israel’s growing diplomatic isolation. He warned that the country faced “a kind of isolation” that might last years, requiring the economy to adopt “autarkic” characteristics. He vowed to turn Israel into “Athens and super Sparta combined” by expanding domestic arms production. Opposition leaders rejected the framing. Yair Lapid called the admission “crazy,” arguing that isolation was the result of Netanyahu’s failed policies. Former military chief Gadi Eisenkot cautioned that “there will be no second chance” to repair the damage.
The Gaza war, now entering its third year, is at the centre of this isolation. Marked by staggering civilian casualties, widespread famine, and devastation, the conflict has drawn accusations of war crimes and genocide from the UN Human Rights Council, Amnesty International, B’Tselem and the International Association of Genocide Scholars. The International Criminal Court has issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu and former defence minister Yoav Gallant on charges including starvation as a method of warfare and crimes against humanity. Meanwhile, the International Court of Justice is deliberating South Africa’s genocide case against Israel.
Settlement expansion and annexation threats have added to the rupture. Far-right ministers in Netanyahu’s coalition openly call for formal annexation of the West Bank. Even Donald Trump, Netanyahu’s closest ally, recently said he “wouldn’t let Israel annex the occupied West Bank,” a rare rebuke underscoring the strain even among friends.
Israel’s military actions abroad have further deepened its isolation. A strike in Doha drew condemnation from Qatar, the Arab League, and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation particularly. A subsequent attack inside Iran provoked outrage across the Muslim World and condemnation from the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation. Beyond military operations, Israel’s technological partnerships are fraying: Microsoft has reportedly cut services to Unit 8200, Israel’s elite cyber-intelligence unit, over surveillance concerns linked to the war.
Embargoes have become another form of censure. On 8 August, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz announced that no military exports usable in Gaza would be approved. Between then and 12 September, the Economy Ministry confirmed, no approvals were granted. Germany had previously supplied warships, radar systems and armoured vehicles, some already deployed against Gaza. The Left Party called for a full embargo, accusing the government of risking complicity in genocide. Other European states — including France, Spain, Italy, the Netherlands and the UK — have since restricted arms sales to Israel.
Parallel to embargoes, recognition of Palestine has surged. More than 150 states now recognise Palestinian statehood, with recent announcements from Australia, Canada, France, the UK and Portugal. The French-Saudi declaration at the UN, calling for both a ceasefire and recognition of Palestine, directly challenged Washington’s long-standing monopoly over mediation. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas welcomed the momentum, while activists launched the “Global Sumud Flotilla (GSF),” with participants from 40 countries determined to break the Gaza blockade by sea.
Inside Israel, the war has taken a domestic toll. Reports of rising soldier suicides highlight the psychological burden of a conflict many Israelis themselves question. Netanyahu’s insistence on pressing ahead has widened divides at home as well as abroad.
For Washington, Israel’s chief patron, credibility is fraying. More than half of Democratic senators recently supported moves to block arms sales to Israel. While Trump reversed a Biden-era pause on 2,000-pound bomb shipments, Europe is no longer automatically aligning with US policy. Each divergence isolates Washington as much as Israel. The Abraham Accords, once heralded as a diplomatic breakthrough, are also under strain: the UAE has warned that annexation of the West Bank could jeopardise normalisation, while Netanyahu’s rejection of a two-state solution risks unraveling fragile ties.
History echoes through the moment. The 1917 Balfour Declaration legitimised Zionist ambitions at Palestinian expense. The international boycotts of apartheid South Africa, meanwhile, demonstrate how isolation erodes legitimacy over time. Israel, a state born of international recognition, now faces the inverse: each recognition of Palestine chips away at its exceptionalism. Analysts describe a butterfly effect — each recognition accelerating pressure, amplifying calls for embargoes, sanctions, and accountability at The Hague.
Netanyahu insists Israel is fighting “on behalf of all nations” against Hamas. Yet the image of him speaking to empty UN seats, while his words were blasted into a besieged Gaza, captured the paradox of his position. For Palestinians, recognition offers hope amid destruction. For Israel, defiance may buy time but deepens isolation and threatens economic collapse. For the US, unconditional backing risks dragging its reputation into Israel’s crisis.
History shows isolation works slowly but decisively. The question now is whether the world will channel Netanyahu’s own warning of “a kind of isolation” into accountability — or whether his defiance will prolong both Israel’s isolation and Palestinian suffering.
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Azmat Ali writes in English and Urdu, with a focus on literature, politics, and religion. Views expressed here are author’s personal. He can be contacted at rascov205@gmail.com and @azmata90_lle (Instagram ID)
