Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel took an unusual and longer route to New York for the U.N. General Assembly meeting, avoiding the airspace of two European countries that have sharply criticized Israel’s conduct of the war in Gaza, according to flight tracking data.
The office of Mr. Netanyahu did not provide an explanation for the circuitous route that added about an hour to his flight.
The prime minister is the subject of an arrest warrant by the International Criminal Court on war crimes charges related to the Israeli offensive in Gaza. The countries he avoided, France and Spain, are both signatories to the Rome Statute, the treaty that established the I.C.C. and could make him subject to arrest if he were to land in their territory.
The European countries have been vocal critics of Israeli policy in Gaza. Mr. Netanyahu has also clashed with President Emmanuel Macron of France, whose government has led global efforts to recognize a Palestinian state over Israeli objections.
[SRC] https://www.nytimes.com/2025/09/26/world/middleeast/netanyahu-flight-un-meeting.html
