The United Nations Security Council is about to convene for an emergency meeting hours after the USA and Israel carried out massive military strikes in Iran.
“The Security Council will hold an emergency briefing today under the agenda item, ‘The Situation within the Middle East.’ The Secretary-General is predicted to temporary,” the UN Department for Political and Peacebuilding Affairs said in an announcement, adding that the meeting will start around 4 pm Eastern.
United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres condemned the “use of force,” adding that the motion was inconsistent with the UN Charter.
“I condemn today’s military escalation within the Middle East. The usage of force by the USA and Israel against Iran, and the next retaliation by Iran across the region, undermine international peace and security,” he said in an announcement.
The primary strikes Saturday morning appeared to focus on the house of Iran’s 86-year-old Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in downtown Tehran. A source with knowledge of the matter had earlier told Reuters that Khamenei was not in Tehran and had been transferred to a secure location.
Tehran responded by launching missiles at Israel; explosions rang out in nearby oil-producing Gulf Arab countries like United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Qatar, Reuters reported. Tehran had warned it might strike the region if it was attacked.
The opposite 4 everlasting members of the UN Security Council — China, Russia, France and the U.K. — have all reacted to the U.S. carrying out strikes on Saturday.
Russia, which shares several key strategic interests with Iran, issued an announcement from its foreign ministry saying the U.S. and Israel “have launched into a deadly course.”
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“It is a deliberate, premeditated, and unprovoked act of armed aggression against a sovereign and independent UN member state, in direct violation of the basic principles and norms of international law,” the statement said.
The Chinese foreign ministry said Beijing was “highly concerned” by the attacks on Iran, adding that Iran’s sovereignty, security and territorial integrity ought to be respected.
“China calls for a direct stop of the military actions, no further escalation of the tense situation, resumption of dialogue and negotiation, and efforts to uphold peace and stability within the Middle East,” the statement read.
French President Emmanuel Macron called the situation “dangerous.”
“The outbreak of war between the USA, Israel, and Iran carries grave consequences for international peace and security,” he said.
British Prime Minister Kier Starmer said in a video statement that his country “played no role in these strikes.”
“But we have now long been clear — the regime in Iran is utterly abhorrent,” he said.
The U.K. is strengthening its defence capacities within the region in light of the present situation, he said.
“Our forces are lively and British planes are within the sky today as a part of co-ordinated regional defensive operations to guard our people, our interests, and our allies — as Britain has done before, in keeping with international law,” he said.
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