Hyderabad: The Consulate General of the Islamic Republic of Iran in Hyderabad, on Tuesday, June 17, condemned the unprompted attacks of Israel on Iranian sovereignty and justified the latter’s retaliatory measures as acts of self-defence.
The statement acknowledged significant numbers of civilian lives lost in Iran, including women and children, as a result of Israeli attacks on civilian settlements. Calling the strikes a “blatant violation of Iran’s sovereignty and territorial integrity”, the consulate condemned the attacks on civilians as a violation of Article 2 (4) of the United Nations Charter.
“The aggressive Zionist regime, with its nuclear arsenal and threats to use them against regional nations, has committed the most alarming number of international law breaches since the UN’s inception,” added the statement.
The Consulate General further alleged that Israeli attacks were “deliberately targeted at residential areas, Hakim Children Hospital, Farabi Hospital, ambulances, aid groups, and most recently, the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting.” This is a violation of the rights of a population beyond just the crimes against humanity that the Zionist regime has committed in Gaza, the statement adds.
The statement calls such attacks on civilian populations illegal as per international law, citing Article 8, the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (1998) – targeting media facilities or attacking nuclear installations – the Geneva Conventions (I and II additional protocols Article 56 and Article 15), as well as the 1990 and 2009 resolutions of the International Atomic Energy Agency as grounds for violations of international law.
The attacks the Zionist regime has committed on Iran insofar pose a serious threat to both civilians and the environment, the statement claims.
Citing Article 51 of the United Nations Charter, “Iran reserves its legitimate and legal right to respond properly to these aggressions,” the statement claims. The Consulate General claims Iran’s Operation True Promise 3 as a necessity based on the self-defence principle.
The Consulate General demands that all United Nations member states interested in justice as well as peace groups condemn the unprompted “criminal acts of aggression” of Israel, further adding that collective measures are necessary to halt Israel’s attacks on nuclear facilities that could be “catastrophic for the world”.
Iran has been pulled into Israel’s crosshairs since Friday, June 13, when Israel launched Operation Rising Lion against the Islamic Republic. The two Middle East powers (both of whom allege nuclear capabilities) have since been trading blows.
