Spokesman Says Iran’s Response to Israeli Aggression Is Legitimate Self-Defense

IQNA – The Iranian Foreign Ministry’s spokesperson described the country’s retaliatory strikes on Israel in response to the Zionist regime’s acts of aggression as a legitimate defense based on human logic and international laws.

Ismail Baghaei made the remark during his weekly press conference in Tehran on Monday.

“The Zionist regime, using weapons supplied by the United States, violated our territory and martyred a number of our prominent figures in a cowardly act of aggression. Following this unforgivable crime, we have launched a resolute defense, one we will continue with full strength. Our response to the Zionist regime is an act of legitimate self-defense under international law and in accordance with human reason and morality.”

The spokesperson described the Israeli regime’s pre-dawn strike on June 13—while people were asleep or preparing for Eid al-Ghadir celebrations, as a brutal aggression carried out with US-provided weapons.

He mourned the martyrdom of Iranian defense leaders, scientists, and innocent civilians, vowing that their memory would endure in Iran’s history.

He emphasized reliance on domestic capabilities and divine support to sustain the heroic resistance of the Iranian people.

Baghaei also called Iran’s retaliation as lawful self-defense under the UN Charter, accusing Israel of violating the principle of non-use of force.

Elsewhere in his remarks, he said any nation supporting or justifying this aggression is complicit in the crime, with their names “etched in the memory of Iranians and regional peoples as accomplices”.

He criticized the UN Security Council’s inaction and “hypocritical calls for Iranian restraint”, equating it to "moral bankruptcy."

Baghaei said failing to punish the Zionist regime for its crimes and atrocities in Palestine with all-out support from the US and other Western countries has now led to an unprecedented threat to peace and security in the region and the world.

That is why all countries and member states of the United Nations that believe in the UN Charter and the principle of law must act now and the UN Security Council must fulfill its duties, he went on to say.

The Israeli regime’s aggression against the Islamic Republic of Iran started on Friday morning and has resulted in the assassinations of many high-ranking Iranian military commanders, nuclear scientists, and civilians, including children and women.

Iran has responded by launching Operation True Promise III that includes missile and drone attacks against the Zionist regime.

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