WANA (Oct 18) – The Ambassador and Permanent Representative of the Islamic Republic of Iran to the United Nations, in a letter to the Security Council and the UN Secretary-General, has responded to the recent allegations made by the Israeli regime against Iran.

 

The text of Amir Saeid Iravani’s letter is as follows:

 

Excellency,

I am writing to you in response to the unfounded accusations made by the representative of the Israeli regime in the letter dated 8 October 2024 (S/2024/721), which falsely claims that the Islamic Republic of Iran has violated international law and the United Nations Charter. In the letter, the representative of the terrorist and occupying regime of Israel, as always, resorts to false narratives, disinformation, and blatant lies to deflect attention from the regime’s ongoing genocide and war crimes against the people of Palestine and Lebanon and to invert the roles of culprit and victim. Yet, the truth starkly contrasts these fabrications, and the undeniable facts speak for themselves. In this regard, I would like to draw the attention of the Members of the Security Council to the following facts and points:

 

1. For over a year, Israel’s occupying and apartheid regime has flagrantly and systematically violated international law, committing war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide against the innocent Palestinian people of Gaza, all with complete impunity. This genocidal war has resulted in the deaths and injuries of over 200,000 civilians, many of whom are buried under the rubble. Israel continues to use starvation as a weapon of war. As reported by the Acting Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator during her briefing to the Security Council’s 9750th meeting on 16 October 2024, no food aid reached northern Gaza between 2 and 15 October and with humanitarian access nearly non-existent. She further stated that since 9 October, Gaza has suffered relentless mass casualties from Israeli airstrikes resulting in nearly 400 Palestinians killed and almost 1,500 injured and that “the world has seen images of patients and displaced families, sheltering near Al-Aqsa Hospital, burning alive, while others, including women and children, endure the excruciating pain of severe, life-altering burns,” without access to urgent medical care.

 

2. This terrorist regime has expanded its genocidal campaign to Lebanon, echoing the brutality it unleashed on the Palestinian people in Gaza. Its relentless attacks on Beirut and southern Lebanon have left a trail of death and destruction. So far, Israel’s brutal aggression against Lebanon has claimed over 2,000 lives, including 127 children, displaced more than 1.2 million people, and imposed unbearable strain on a nation already burdened with refugees from Syria and Palestine.

 

3. Meanwhile, Israel continues its brazen aggression against the sovereignty of the Syrian Arab Republic, deliberately targeting civilians, critical infrastructure, and even humanitarian convoys traveling from Syria to Lebanon, cruelly cutting off essential aid to those in desperate need. On 9 October 2024, Israel carried out a deliberate and brutal bombardment of the Iranian Red Crescent’s humanitarian aid facility, which included a fully equipped field hospital with 56 beds and advanced medical equipment. This facility had formally informed the International Committee of the Red Cross of its mission, which was solely to provide life-saving assistance to displaced Lebanese civilians and victims of Israel’s relentless and barbaric aggression. The Israeli egregious violation was officially notified to the Security Council and the UN Secretary-General in our letter dated 11 October 2024 (S/2024/734).

 

4. Israel’s actions are indisputable war crimes. The deliberate targeting of civilians and the destruction of civilian infrastructure including humanitarian and medical facilities, schools, and educational centers are not only violations of international law; they are war crimes, crimes against humanity, and acts of genocide.

 

5. In light of these facts, it is deeply disturbing and utterly hypocritical that Israel, a regime infamous for its persistent and blatant violations of international law, the UN Charter, and UNSC resolutions, would dare to accuse Iran of baseless allegations. This is the very regime whose representative, in full view of the international community, tore up the UN Charter on the podium of the General Assembly, whose Foreign Minister recently declared the UN Secretary-General persona non grata, and whose military forces have shamelessly murdered UN personnel and humanitarian workers, and attacked peacekeepers with impunity. Such a regime utterly lacks the moral authority to accuse any other nation of violating international law.

 

6. Iran’s support for resistance groups is entirely legitimate under international law. The resistance groups are engaged in a lawful struggle against Israel’s brutal occupation and relentless aggression. As long as Israel continues its illegal occupation and violent aggression, the resistance will persist, and Iran will continue to stand by resistance groups who defend their land and people against occupation and aggression. Furthermore, the logic of resistance groups is to operate under the principle of opposing occupation and aggression by specifically targeting the security and military positions of the Zionist occupying forces, while diligently adhering to international humanitarian law and maintaining a strict distinction between military and civilian targets. To date, they have demonstrated the utmost restraint in this regard. In stark contrast, Israel has egregiously and systematically violated international law, including international humanitarian law and all principles of ethics, legality, and humanity by deliberately targeting civilians and essential infrastructure.

 

7. Israel is a grave and imminent threat to international peace and security. Its continuous acts of terror and aggression are pushing the entire region towards the brink of war. The Security Council cannot afford to remain silent in the face of these atrocities. The time has come for the international community, and the Security Council in particular, to hold this regime accountable. The Security Council must stop Israel’s unchecked aggression, uphold international law, and restore peace and stability to the region. The Islamic Republic of Iran urgently calls on the Security Council to take immediate and decisive action to compel Israel to cease its aggression and atrocity crimes in Gaza, Lebanon, and Syria, and to comply with all relevant UN Security Council resolutions.

 

8. The Islamic Republic of Iran does not seek war or escalation in the region, but it stands fully prepared to defend its sovereignty and territorial integrity against any aggression threatening its vital interests and security, particularly from Israel. Iran will exercise its inherent right to self-defense, fully in accordance with international law, and will duly inform the Security Council of its legitimate and necessary response.

 

I should be grateful if you would circulate the present letter as a document of the Security Council.

 

Please accept, Excellency, the assurances of my highest consideration.