Acting on Iran’s request, the UNSC has decided to meet on Monday to discuss Israel’s recent strike. Tehran had called for a meeting after it claimed that Israel violated international law with its direct attack on Iran early on Saturday.
In the letter addressed to the Security Council Iran said that Israel’s actions “constitute a serious violation of the sovereignty and territorial integrity” and are “a flagrant breach of international law and the United Nations Charter.”
Israel’s UN ambassador, Danny Danon, described Iran’s request as a fresh effort to undermine Israel, this time through political means. He pledged to firmly uphold Israel’s right to self-defense.
“Iran will not be allowed to continue hiding behind its affiliates, as long as Iran continues to threaten and try to harm us, it will pay the price,” Danon said.
Israel’s early morning attack on Iran was a response to Tehran’s airstrike on October 1 which was in turn a retaliation over the death of Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah.
Iran has downplayed the attacks, saying they caused negligible damage. Meanwhile, the United Nations atomic energy watchdog on Saturday said that Iran’s nuclear programme – a source of international controversy – was not affected by Israel’s deadly air strike on its arch-rival’s military facilities.
Impact Shorts
More Shorts“Iran’s nuclear facilities have not been impacted,” IAEA director general Rafael Grossi wrote on X, urging “prudence and restraint from actions that could jeopardize the safety and security of nuclear and other radioactive materials.”
Iran has maintained that it has a ‘duty’ to defend itself, a statement that has been backed by Gulf countries including Saudi Arabia and Qatar.
With inputs from agencies