Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu excoriated the United Nations on Thursday for enriching a "militant Islamic terror regime" through the Iran nuclear deal.
"Does anyone seriously believe that flooding a radical theocracy with weapons and cash will curb its appetite for aggression? Do any of you really believe that a theocratic Iran with sharper claws and sharper fangs will be more likely to change its stripes?" Netanyahu asked.
Netanyahu chastised the body for treating Iran like a normal negotiating partner instead of a rogue nation.
"I've said that if Iran wants to be treated like a normal country, let it act like a normal country," Netanyahu said in a speech before the U.N. General Assembly.
Netanyahu said that the nuclear deal, which gives Iran access to roughly $100 billion in previously frozen assets, among other concessions, will pave the path to an Iranian nuclear bomb even if it continues its campaign of destabilizing violence in the Middle East.
"Under this deal, if Iran doesn't change its behavior—in fact, if it becomes even more dangerous in the years to come—the more important constraints will still be automatically lifted by year 10 and by year 15. That would place a militant Islamic terror regime weeks away from having the fissile material for an entire arsenal of nuclear bombs."
Netanyahu’s speech was punctuated by hearty applause from the Israeli delegation and conspicuous silence from the rest of the audience. The U.S. delegation has historically been a strong advocate for Israel, but its members sat in silence with the rest of the chamber as Netanyahu dressed down President Obama’s legacy foreign policy initiative.
Netanyahu addressed this silence during the most poignant moment of his speech.
"Seventy years after the murder of 6 million Jews, Iran’s leaders promise to destroy my country, murder my people and the response from this body, the response from nearly every one of the governments represented here, has been absolutely nothing," Netanyahu said. "Utter silence. Deafening silence."
This was followed by 45 seconds of silence, as Netanyahu looked challengingly out at his audience.