The technical malfunction, which has recurred on various occasions, directly affected the speeches of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, and Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto, during the high-level annual session of the General Assembly. In one of the most notable moments, the voice of the Indonesian President suddenly cut off while he was announcing his country’s intention to send peacekeeping forces to Gaza. The interpreter appeared visibly confused, pausing for a few seconds before the audio gradually resumed.
Similarly, President Erdogan’s speech encountered a similar malfunction while he was discussing the humanitarian situation in Gaza and making an appeal. The interpreter was heard saying: “The President cannot be heard, his voice has disappeared,” before the issue was quickly resolved.
In response to questions and accusations circulating on social media, the United Nations Technical Affairs Department denied any intention of deliberate disruption of the leaders’ speeches, stating that “the malfunctions were due to technical problems with the audio equipment,” which hosted dozens of speeches over the past week. The department confirmed that “there are no indications of intentional interference or external hacking of the audio system.”
Despite this clarification, the incident remains a topic of discussion among observers and activists, especially given the sensitivity of the topics that coincided with the malfunctions, highlighting the importance of ensuring the readiness of technical infrastructure at major international forums.
