There was a very large walkout at the UN today, September 24, during Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s address to the General Assembly.
Dozens of national delegations got up and left the General Assembly chamber as Netanyahu began speaking. Reuters describes it as dozens of delegates walking out.
The walkout was largely a protest over Israel's conduct in Gaza and the broader Middle East conflict, with protesters also gathering outside the UN.
The Iranian delegation also walked out; a photo of Qassem Soleimani was reportedly left on Iran's desk afterward.
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Netanyahu responded sharply, calling those who left “moral cowards” and then proceeded with his speech to the remaining delegates.
This wasn't literally everyone walking out. Some delegations remained, and some of those remaining applauded and chanted in support of Israel.
What's particularly striking is how visually dramatic it was: Netanyahu walked to the podium while a stream of diplomats exited, leaving large sections of the chamber empty.The best figure available right now is 77 country delegations that were either absent or left the hall around Netanyahu's speech. The UN has 193 member states, so that would leave 116 country delegations represented if you simply subtract 77 from 193.
But there's an important distinction:
77: reported as absent or having left — it is not a verified count of 77 walkouts.
116: the mathematical remainder of UN member states.
Reuters is more cautious, reporting only “dozens” of delegates actually walked out.
Some of the 77 countries apparently weren't in the hall to begin with, so saying “77 countries walked out” overstates what is actually verified.