Delegates leave chamber for Egyptian minister's speech at UN

Delegates at the UN General Assembly left the chamber this week when Egypt’s Foreign Minister Nabil Fahmy went to the podium. He spoke to a virtually empty floor, with only a few delegates left in their seats, including those from Israel.

Controversy is following the interim government in Egypt as its own delegates entering the UN building in New York were faced with crowds of Egyptian expatriates demonstrating against the coup which overthrew the democratically-elected President Mohammed Morsi in July. The demonstrators had the opportunity to speak to a number of foreign delegates who stopped to ask for further information about the situation in Egypt.

Earlier, Tunisian President Moncef Marzouki used his speech before the General Assembly to demand Morsi’s release from detention. The deposed president hasn’t been seen in public since the July 3 coup.