The United Nations has urged Iran and Israel to exercise restraint as the specter of a full-scale direct conflict between the two nations looms over the Middle East.
Secretary-General Antonio Guterres cautioned the adversaries during an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council on Sunday, advising against further escalating tensions in the region following recent mutual air attacks over the past two weeks.
However, instead of seeking reconciliation, Iran and Israel focused on blaming each other for posing a threat to peace.
“Neither the region nor the world can afford more war,” Guterres emphasised during the meeting. “Now is the time to defuse and de-escalate.”
“It’s imperative to step back from the brink,” he asserted. Late on Saturday, Iran launched hundreds of drones and missiles at Israel, marking a significant escalation.
The ongoing war in Gaza has led to frequent clashes between Iran’s regional allies, including Hezbollah, Hamas, the Houthis, and Israel.
The direct attack was in retaliation to a strike, still unclaimed by Israel, on Iran’s embassy compound in Syria on April 1. During the meeting, Robert Wood, the deputy US ambassador to the UN, urged the 15-member body to condemn Iran’s attack unequivocally.
He stressed that the UNSC has a responsibility not to let Iran’s actions go unanswered and that the United States will explore additional measures in the coming days to hold Iran accountable.
“Let me be clear: if Iran or its proxies take actions against the United States or further action against Israel, Iran will be held responsible,” he stated.
Heated words were exchanged
Tensions flared as representatives from Iran and Israel engaged in heated exchanges during the meeting, urging the council to impose sanctions on each other.
Iran’s UN ambassador, Amir Saeid Iravani, defended his country’s actions against Israel, stating that they were necessary and proportionate.
He asserted that the UNSC “failed in its duty to maintain international peace and security” by not condemning the Israeli attack on its diplomatic mission in Syria.
Tehran, he claimed, “had no choice” but to respond, emphasizing that Iran does “not seek escalation or war” but will react to any “threat or aggression.”
Iravani urged the Security Council to fulfill its responsibility and address the real threat to international peace and security.
He called for urgent and punitive measures to compel the Israeli regime to halt what he referred to as “genocide against the people of Gaza.”
Israel’s UN Ambassador Gilad Erdan characterised Iran as “the number one global sponsor of terror” and labeled it a “pirate state.”
He emphasized the urgency for action, stating, “The only option is to condemn Iran … and ensure that the world will no longer stand idle.”
Erdan asserted Israel’s right to retaliate, citing the recent attack as crossing “every red line.”
He called on the UNSC to designate the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, Iran’s elite military outfit, as a terrorist organisation and to impose all possible sanctions on Iran.
The escalating tensions between Iran and Israel coincide with Israel’s six-month-old conflict with Gaza, initiated after an attack by Hamas on October 7.
This conflict has resulted in significant casualties, with thousands dead, primarily civilians, according to Gaza’s Ministry of Health.
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