TEHRAN – Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister for Legal and International Affairs, Kazem Gharibabadi, has denounced the recent US-Israeli military attacks on Iran as a "blatant crime" and a “historic test” for the United Nations Security Council, urging the body to uphold its mandate in the face of such unlawful actions.

Gharibabadi, currently in New York for political consultations and two high-level UN Security Council sessions, made the remarks during a special briefing attended by representatives from over 110 UN member states.

In his address, he outlined the scope and severity of the joint US-Israeli strikes on Iran’s territory, warning that the aggression poses a direct threat to international peace and security. He described the Israeli regime as the main driver of instability in the region for more than eight decades.

“Israel has carried out over 3,000 terrorist operations, forcibly displaced more than seven million Palestinians, martyred hundreds of thousands, and imprisoned over a million,” he stated.

Gharibabadi further warned of the dangers posed by Israel’s undeclared nuclear arsenal, noting that the regime holds hundreds of nuclear warheads but remains outside all disarmament and non-proliferation treaties.

In contrast, he emphasized, Iran’s nuclear program remains peaceful and under constant monitoring by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). He accused Israel and the US of spreading baseless claims about an Iranian nuclear bomb for over three decades.

He also criticized the silence and complicity of international institutions and some Western states, particularly the UK, France, and Germany, in response to the strikes. “The Security Council, the IAEA Board of Governors, and others have either remained silent or sided with the aggressors in violation of international law,” he said.

Gharibabadi warned that such silence sends a dangerous message: “If a country is not part of the Non-Proliferation Treaty, it can act with impunity and even enjoy privileges.”

‘Israel deliberately targeted civilians in strike’

Separately, in a meeting with Mirjana Spoljaric Egger, President of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), Gharibabadi rejected Israel’s claim of “self-defense” in its attack on Iran, calling it a “blatant lie” and a clear violation of the UN Charter.

He said the regime’s assault, which led to the martyrdom or injury of nearly 7,000 Iranians—most of them civilians—was illegal under international law and violated all established humanitarian principles.

Spoljaric Egger, for her part, emphasized the importance of strengthening cooperation between the ICRC and the Islamic Republic. She also acknowledged ongoing collaboration between the ICRC and the Iranian Red Crescent Society, noting that medical aid had already been dispatched to Iran.

According to Iranian officials, on June 13, Israel launched a surprise military strike that assassinated senior military commanders and nuclear scientists, while also killing civilians. Nine days later, on June 22, the United States escalated the conflict by bombing three nuclear facilities in Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan—an act Iran says blatantly violated international law and the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).

Iran’s swift and coordinated retaliatory operations two days later reportedly succeeded in halting the offensive by both the US and Israel.

Gharibabadi warns E3 over snapback threats

In another meeting with the Group of Friends in Defense of the UN Charter, Gharibabadi condemned recent statements by the E3—Germany, France, and the UK—regarding the possible reactivation of the snapback mechanism.

He said any effort to trigger the mechanism, which would reinstate all UN sanctions on Iran lifted under the 2015 nuclear deal (JCPOA), would sharply escalate tensions. “Western parties will bear full responsibility for the consequences,” he warned.

He reaffirmed that Iran would continue to “resolutely defend its sovereignty, independence, and national interests” in the face of any aggression or unlawful pressure.

Representatives from several countries, including Russia, China, Palestine, Venezuela, and others, expressed broad support for Iran’s position during the meeting.