Many countries boycott Israeli speeches at International Labor Conference session

GENEVA (AA) – A large number of delegates left an International Labor Conference session in Geneva in protest when an Israeli government delegate and an employer took the floor.

The incidents occurred during a special sitting on the situation of workers in Israel where many countries voiced solidarity with Palestinian workers amid the ongoing war.

For Israel’s turn, government delegate Yeela Cytrin took the stage, and that is when a small group of countries — what seemed to be a previously planned move — stood up and left the room. To show solidarity, other countries joined the protest.

Before the end of Cytrin’s speech, half of the room was already empty.

The Israeli delegate recognized the protest against her speech by saying that “half the forum leaves during the discussion” and blamed the room for “demonizing” Israel.

A similar protest happened a few speeches later when an Israeli employer, Ishai Pollack, addressed the room.

Israel has continued its war on Gaza since October 7, 2023 despite a UN Security Council resolution demanding an immediate cease-fire.

It has killed more than 36,650 Palestinians in Gaza, the vast majority being women and children, according to local health authorities. More than 83,300 others have been injured.

Eight months into the Israeli war, vast swathes of Gaza lie in ruins amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water, and medicine.

Israel stands accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice, which in its latest ruling has ordered Tel Aviv to immediately halt its operation in Rafah, where over a million Palestinians had sought refuge from the war before it was invaded on May 6.