NEW YORK, September 27, 2026 (WAFA) — Icelandic Foreign Minister Thorgerdur Katrin Gunnarsdottir hit back at Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's remarks describing diplomats who walked out of his United Nations General Assembly speech as “moral cowards,” saying the term better describes leaders who refuse to negotiate for peace or obstruct humanitarian aid.

Addressing the UN General Assembly in New York, Gunnarsdottir criticized world leaders who, she said, refuse to negotiate for a just and lasting peace, prevent humanitarian assistance from reaching those in need, and violate or disregard international law.

She warned that the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East must not cause other crises to become invisible.

Addressing the situation in Palestine, Gunnarsdottir stressed that the suffering of Palestinian civilians cannot become “background noise,” pointing to the continued killing of children, families losing their homes, and the difficulties faced by parents trying to keep their children alive.

She also criticized the repeated destruction and reconstruction of the Gaza Strip without addressing the root causes of the issue.

Regarding the occupied West Bank, the Icelandic foreign minister pointed to continued settlement expansion and violence against Palestinians by Israeli colonists, amid impunity, inflammatory rhetoric and policies that facilitate such violence.

M.N