WANA (Mar 03) – Iran’s Ambassador and Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Amir Saeed Iravani, emphasized that the Islamic Republic of Iran would continue to defend itself as long as the aggression persists.

 

In an informal meeting with journalists at the UN Security Council on Monday evening, Iravani said, “Iran is exercising its natural right to self-defense under Article 51 of the UN Charter. Our response is legal, necessary, and proportional.”

 

The full text of Ambassador Iravani’s statement at the UN press briefing is as follows:

 

“On February 28, 2026, the United States, in full coordination with Israel, launched the second deliberate and unprovoked military attack against the Islamic Republic of Iran. This was a calculated act of aggression targeting major cities and densely populated residential areas. Hundreds of innocent civilians lost their lives, and many more were injured.

 

This act is a gross violation of the United Nations Charter, particularly Article 2, Section 4, which absolutely prohibits the threat or use of force against the sovereignty and territorial integrity of any state. This attack is a direct assault on the foundations of international law.

 

On February 28, the Security Council held an emergency session. The facts were clear. The aggression was evident. The responsibility was clear.

 

In an unprecedented and reckless move, the United States and Israel intentionally targeted the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, and many senior military officials. Targeting the highest authority of a sovereign UN member state is a blatant violation of international law and a direct attack on the principle of sovereign equality of states. Such behavior endangers the entire international system.

 

The United States and Israel deliberately target civilians and civilian infrastructure. Schools, hospitals, Red Crescent facilities, and residential buildings have been attacked. On the first day of the aggression, a girls’ school in Minab, a small city in Hormozgan province in southern Iran, was intentionally destroyed, resulting in the martyrdom of 165 innocent female students. Their bodies were recovered after hours of rescue operations.

 

That same day, similar attacks in other cities, including East Tehran and Abik in Qazvin province, led to the martyrdom of several other students.

 

However, just this afternoon, the Israeli Ambassador, from the same podium, shamelessly denied the crimes committed by his regime against children and innocent civilians in Iran, using lies and fabrications.

 

Yesterday, additional attacks targeted Red Crescent buildings, Motahari, Gandhi, and Khatam hospitals in Tehran, Abu Zar Hospital in Ahvaz, three emergency stations in Sarab, Chabahar, and Hamedan, as well as residential buildings in northern Tehran.

 

This morning, missiles struck a densely populated residential area in Sanandaj, Kurdistan province. The exact casualty figures are still under investigation.

 

These actions are an act of aggression.

These actions are war crimes.

These actions are crimes against humanity.

 

The United Nations cannot remain silent. Accountability is not a choice.

 

It is shameful and the height of hypocrisy that the United States, on its first day presiding over the Security Council, held a high-level meeting on the protection of children, technology, and education in armed conflicts under the agenda of “Maintaining International Peace and Security,” while simultaneously launching missiles at Iranian cities, bombing schools, and killing children.

 

For the United States, “protecting children” and “maintaining international peace and security” apparently mean something very different from what the United Nations Charter dictates.

 

Words about peace and protection cannot cover up acts of aggression. There should be no doubt: there was no imminent threat from Iran. Our nuclear program is entirely peaceful. We were engaged in serious diplomatic negotiations.

 

For the second time, the United States chose force over diplomacy and violated the Charter. There is no legal basis to justify this attack. The so-called “preemptive strike” claim has no place in international law. The prohibition on the use of force is absolute, except in self-defense against an armed attack.

 

Iran is exercising its inherent right to self-defense under Article 51 of the Charter. Our response is legal, necessary, and proportional.

 

We only target the military objectives of the hostile forces. We do not target civilians. We do not target the interests of neighboring countries.

 

Under international law, every state is obligated to prevent its territory from being used for aggressive acts against another state.

 

Member states must take due care to prevent foreign forces from using their territory to attack other countries.

 

Iran does not seek war. Iran does not seek to escalate tensions. But Iran will not relinquish its sovereignty.

 

The issue facing the international community is clear: Can a powerful state attack a sovereign UN member state with complete impunity? If the answer is yes, then the Charter is meaningless. If the answer is no, then this aggression must be condemned and stopped. Double standards will destroy the credibility of this council. Silence will embolden further lawlessness.

 

As long as aggression continues, Iran will firmly and immediately defend itself. The Security Council must take decisive, clear, and unambiguous action.”