Ambassador's Statement at UNSC: Situation in Palestine
Iran's Ambassador has delivered a statement during a UN Security Council session to discuss the situation in Palestine. The full text of the statement is as follows:
Statement by H.E. Mr. Amir Saeid Iravani
Ambassador and Permanent Representative of the Islamic Republic of Iran
Before the UNSC Open Briefing on the Situation in the Middle East
New York, 23 October 2025
بسم الرحمن الرحیم
Mr. President,
Since this is the first time I will take the floor this month, I would like to extend my sincere congratulations to the Russian Federation on assuming the Presidency of the Security Council this month and commend you. I also wish to express our appreciation for convening this important open debate.
Mr. President,
The Israeli occupying regime has become a manifest and serious threat to regional and international peace and security. For two years, the people in Gaza have endured an unprecedented and all-out war of extermination by this regime. During this time, Israel has engaged in systematic, indiscriminate, and disproportionate bombardments of innocent people. More than 68,000 innocent Palestinians have been killed, thousands remain missing, and over 20,000 children have lost their lives. The entire infrastructure has been obliterated — hospitals, schools, and water systems have been reduced to rubble. In fact, Gaza has been transformed into a landscape of devastation — a living testament to unbridled impunity. With the end of military operations in Gaza, the world is only beginning to grasp the full extent of the devastation left behind.
These atrocities constitute flagrant violations of international humanitarian law and international human rights law. They represent the deliberate use of starvation as a method of warfare, the imposition of an unlawful blockade, the continuation of colonial settlement and apartheid policies, systematic ethnic cleansing, and repeated attacks against Islamic and Christian holy sites.
Just yesterday, the International Court of Justice, in its latest advisory opinion, found that Israel is in grave violation of international law for obstructing humanitarian aid, attacking UNRWA and other UN agencies, killing hundreds of UN personnel, destroying humanitarian facilities, and using starvation as a method of warfare.
Mr. President,
Israel’s aggression and criminal acts are not confined to Gaza. This terrorist regime continues to violate the sovereignty and territorial integrity of countries in the region through repeated airstrike aggressions on Syria, targeting civilian areas and critical infrastructure; and continues its occupation in Golan heights, it has escalated military attacks against Lebanon, destabilizing internationally recognized borders; launched unlawful terrorist attacks and aggression against Yemen; and even committed an act of aggression against Qatar. All these crimes happened as a direct result of the Security Council’s inaction.
The Islamic Republic of Iran has also been a direct target of Israeli aggression. Between 13 to 24 June (2025), Israel launched unprovoked and large-scale attacks against residential areas, hospitals, and peaceful nuclear facilities under full IAEA safeguards. As a result of these indiscriminate and unlawful attacks, 1,100 innocent civilians — including 132 women and 45 children — have lost their lives, and more than 5,700 others have been injured.
These criminal acts — supported and coordinated by the United States — represented a grave breach of the UN Charter, international law, and peremptory norm of international law, posing a direct threat to international peace, security, and the integrity of the global non-proliferation regime.
Yet, despite all these severe violations, this Council remains silent and paralyzed. The United States, an irresponsible permanent member of the Council, has resorted to the veto and obstructed collective action and shielded Israel from accountability.
Mr. President,
The Islamic Republic of Iran supports every credible initiative aimed at ending the genocide in Gaza, ensuring the complete withdrawal of occupying forces, establishing a permanent ceasefire, facilitating the unhindered delivery of humanitarian aid, and restoring the inalienable and fundamental rights of the Palestinian people.
The ending of the war against people in Gaza — However vital — does not absolve member states and competent international bodies of their shared legal, moral, and humanitarian obligations to ensure justice and accountability. True justice requires full accountability. The perpetrators and masterminds of war crimes, genocide, and crimes against humanity must be prosecuted, and the decades-long culture of impunity surrounding the Israeli regime must finally end.
Mr. President,
The Islamic Republic of Iran reiterates that the only sustainable and just path toward ending this historic crisis is through the realization of the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people, including their right to self-determination and the establishment of an independent and sovereign State of Palestine, with Al-Quds al-Sharif as its eternal capital.
In conclusion, Mr. President, I categorically reject the unfounded allegations made by the United States representative. Iran’s foreign policy is firmly rooted in the UN Charter—respecting sovereignty, territorial integrity, non-interference, and good-neighborliness. It is, in fact, the unlawful military presence and destabilizing actions of the United States that have fueled conflict and instability in our region. Iran has consistently shown its readiness for fair, genuine dialogue.
Furthermore, the false narrative of “Iranian proxies” is a deliberate distraction from the true source of regional instability — the United States and its unconditional support for its proxy in the region, the Israeli regime, enabling its ongoing aggression, atrocities, and occupation. By repeatedly obstructing the Security Council’s Charter mandate, Washington has rendered itself complicit in these crimes and bears direct legal and moral responsibility for their continuation.
I thank you, Mr. President.