Iran condemns US strikes that killed Khamenei at UN meeting

Iranian Ambassador to the United Nations Amir-Saeid Iravani condemned U.S. strikes against Iran that targeted the country’s military leadership and killed Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, calling the attack a double standard and promising the country would defend itself at a U.N. Security Council meeting Saturday.

Iravani accused the U.S. of undermining its claims of pursuing international stability while attacking a sovereign country for its “domestic” activities.

“Neither the charter nor international law recognize internal matters of a state as justification for the use of force by other states. The rule of law would be replaced by the rule of force,” Iravani said.

“Iran will continue to exercise its right of self-defense decisively and without hesitation until the aggression ceases in full and unequivocal terms.”

On Saturday morning, President Donald Trump ordered the execution of Operation Epic Fury, citing Tehran’s continued efforts to develop a nuclear weapon.

“It has always been the policy of the United States, in particular my administration, that this terrorist regime can never have a nuclear weapon. I’ll say it again. They can never have a nuclear weapon,” Trump said in remarks about the attack Saturday.

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Trump said the strikes were meant to “defend the American people by eliminating imminent threats from the Iranian regime” and that they had come after Iran had refused to abandon plans to develop nuclear capabilities.

Iravani called the attack a continuation of longstanding U.S. aggression against Iran.

“Mr. president, this morning the United States regime, jointly and in coordination with the Israeli regime, initiated an unprovoked and premeditated aggression against the Islamic Republic of Iran for the second time in recent months,” Irvani said, referring to strikes the U.S. carried out against its nuclear enrichment sites last year.

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“The president of the United States and the prime minister of the Israeli regime have openly claimed responsibility for this act of aggression and have explicitly articulated regime change as their objective, an unmistakable admission of their intent to violate Iran’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.”

U.N. Ambassador Mike Waltz pushed back on Iravani’s characterizations.

“For 47 years, the Iranian regime has chanted, quote, ‘Death to America’ at every turn. At every opening, it has sought to eradicate the state of Israel. It has waged an unending campaign of bloodshed and mass murder,” Waltz said.

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Iravani did not address the negotiations between the U.S. and Iran on its nuclear development plans.

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