TEHRAN – In an emergency meeting on Monday the UN Security Council members quarreled over Israel’s Oct. 26 attacks on Iran’s military installations.
The United States and its allies quarreled with other members of the UN body responsible for international peace and security.
China as a permanent member of the UN Security Council said the Israeli attack violated Iran’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. China also said the situation in the Middle East is quite volatile and that Beijing is worried about Israel’s behavior.
Russia, another permanent member of the council, strongly criticized the Israeli attack on Iran. The Russian envoy to the UN said the Security Council should stop the region from degenerating into a wide-scale war.
Algeria’s representative said the Israeli attack endangers international peace and security.
However, the U.S. ambassador expressed Washington’s support for Israel and called Israel’s violation of Iran’s sovereignty a “defense” of itself and said the Israeli air attacks were carried out outside residential areas. She all called on Iran to stop its retaliatory attacks on Israel.
Like her U.S. counterpart, the British diplomat expressed support for Israel and said “Iran should not respond to Israel’s attacks.”
The French diplomat also said a ceasefire should be established in Gaza as soon as possible and asked Israel to pull out its troops from Lebanon.
Iran’s ambassador to the UN said the United States’ “unconditional support” for Israel has prevented the UN Security Council from conducting its duties and “emboldened Israel to persist in these crimes” in Gaza, Lebanon and now Iran.
Amir Saeed Iravani said the U.S. is complicit in Israel’s crimes. He also said Iran’s response to Israel’s Oct. 26 attack will be in accordance with international law.
He also qualified the situation in Lebanon and Gaza as “ethnic cleansing and war crimes” and urged the Security Council to take decisive measures to restore peace and authority in the region. “Responsibility requires more than words and recommendations,” he said, stressing that the international community must not remain silent in the face of these violations.
The Syrian ambassador said Israeli aggression against Iran is “a flagrant violation of international law, the UN Charter and the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Iran.”
Strongly condemning those acts, Syria supports Tehran’s legitimate right to self-defence and the protection of its citizens.