Haley: It's a new day for Israel at the UN

United States Ambassador to UN pledges to continue to stand up for Israel.

By Elad Benari, INN

Nikki Haley, the United States Ambassador to the UN, on Tuesday spoke before the World Jewish Congress’ (WJC) Plenary Assembly in New York, vowing that “it’s a new day for Israel at the United Nations.”

“The United States will no longer be silent as Israel is unfairly attacked at the United Nations. Silence is not my thing anyway, but that’s especially true when it comes to standing up for America’s friends. And we have no better friend in the Middle East than Israel,” Haley told the gathering.

“The anti-Israel bias that has existed for so long at the UN is cut from the same cloth as the BDS movement and the global rise in anti-Semitism. They all seek to delegitimize Israel. They are all efforts to intimidate her friends and embolden her enemies,” she continued.

“As long as I’m America’s representative at the UN, I am going to stand for human rights and I am going to stand for the truth. And that means I am going to stand for Israel,” the ambassador added.

Haley said that the UN must cease its hypocrisy in singling out Israel, and recognize that the true source of instability in the Middle East is Iran.

“As with the issue of human rights and Israel, it is the simple truth that will guide the United States policy toward Iran – both inside the UN and out. The truth is that Iran is the world’s number one state sponsor of terrorism. The truth is that Iran is the number one source of instability in the Middle East,” she said.

“The facts are this: Israel has the right to exist in peace and security. Israel is America’s best friend in the Middle East. Israel and America both seek peace. Anti-Semitism must be ended in all of its forms in every place on the planet,” added Haley.

Since taking office, Haley has made it a priority to stop the anti-Israel bias at the UN. Last week, she urged the UN Security Council to devote less attention to the Arab-Israeli conflict and make Iran’s “incredibly destructive” activities a priority in the Middle East.

Speaking at the AIPAC policy conference recently, the American ambassador said “there’s a new sheriff in town” and vowed that “the days of Israel bashing [at the UN] are over”.

Earlier in the week, UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres addressed the WJC gathering, and reassured participants that he would stand up against any perceptions of anti-Israel bias at the world organization.