Israel's UN ambassador stages protest as Iran's President Raisi speaks at General Assembly

Gilad Erdan holds up placard demanding freedom for Iranian women

Israel’s ambassador escorted from UN

Israel’s ambassador escorted from UN
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Israel's ambassador to the UN, Gilad Erdan, was escorted from the General Assembly by security officers after staging a protest as Iran's President Ibrahim Raisi began his address.

Mr Erdan held up a placard with a picture of Mahsa Amini, who died in police custody last year after being arrested in Tehran, and a message that read: “Iranian women deserve freedom now.”

He was taken out of the UN General Assembly hall on Tuesday, videos posted on social media have shown.

Mr Erdan later commented on his actions in a message on X, formerly known as Twitter.

“When President Raisi of Iran began his speech, I waved a picture of Mahsa Amini, the innocent Iranian woman who was brutally murdered by the regime one year ago for not wearing a hijab ‘properly’,” he wrote.

“Meanwhile, outside the UN hundreds of Iranians were protesting, begging for help from the international community. I will never stop fighting for the truth and I will always expose the UN’s moral distortions.

"Those who roll out the red carpet for murderers and anti-Semites must be held accountable for their actions.”

Mr Raisi, addressing the 78th UN General Assembly on the opening day, demanded an end to US sanctions against Iran.

“These sanctions have not yielded the desired results,” he said.

"It is time now for the United States to bring a cessation to its wrong path and choose the right side."

He said the US should prove its “goodwill and determination” to revive the 2015 Iran nuclear deal that Washington abandoned in 2018.

Updated: September 20, 2023, 9:32 AM