Iran Tells UN Secretary-General That US-Israeli Airstrikes Violated International Law

by | Jul 11, 2025

Iran Tells UN Secretary-General That US-Israeli Airstrikes Violated International Law

by | Jul 11, 2025

iaea expert mission (02011232) (52318506586)

By IAEA Imagebank (Dean Calma / IAEA) - IAEA Expert Mission (02011232), CC BY 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=122449488

Iran is accusing Israel and the United States of violating the United Nations Charter, the Iranian state-owned Press TV reported on Thursday. In a letter to UN Secretary-General António Guterres and Security Council President Asim Iftikhar Ahmad, Iranian Ambassador Amir-Saeid Iravani condemned the joint US-Israeli attacks on Iran last month, saying that they breached international law. Attached to his letter was a report from the Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs detailing the attacks.

“In the early hours of June 13, 2025 while Iranian families were at rest, the Israeli regime – backed by extensive military, intelligence, and political support from the United States and certain Western countries – launched coordinated air, missile, and drone attacks targeting residential areas, civilian infrastructure, and peaceful nuclear facilities. These indiscriminate and illegal attacks martyred 1,100 innocent civilians, including 132 women and 45 children, and injured over 5,700 others,” the Iranian official wrote. He added that the June airstrikes “constitute[d] grave violations of the UN Charter, international law, international humanitarian law, including the Geneva Conventions, and international human rights instruments such as the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the [International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights].”

Iravani had previously denounced Israel’s “barbaric and criminal attacks” during an emergency session of the UN Security Council on June 13. During that meeting, the Iranian diplomat faulted the UN and its International Atomic Energy Agency with ignoring Israeli threats to Iran’s nuclear facilities. He added, “Those who support this regime, with the United States at the forefront, must understand that they are complicit.”

Iravani’s letter came the same day that Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian urged the IAEA to drop its “double standards regarding the nuclear file.” Last week, the Iranian leader signed a bill suspending the Islamic Republic’s cooperation with the UN watchdog organization. Pezeshkian’s order further impedes the international community’s efforts to monitor the Iranian nuclear program.

During his Monday night dinner with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, President Donald Trump lauded the US airstrikes, saying that they “stopped a lot of fighting.” The day before, Trump told reporters that the strikes had resulted in the “complete and total obliteration” of Iran’s nuclear capabilities, a claim that the Defense Intelligence Agency disputed.

James Rushmore

James Rushmore is a writer whose interests include civil liberties, foreign policy, and national security. His work has previously appeared in Racket News, where he worked with Matt Taibbi on the FOIA Files.

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