Iran’s Ambassador to the United Nations, Amir Saeid Iravani, has revealed a grim toll, asserting that 1,322 civilians were killed in combined attacks by Israel and the United States on his country this past Friday, March 6. Beyond the tragic loss of life, Ambassador Iravani also reported that thousands more Iranian citizens sustained injuries in these alleged assaults.
Speaking to journalists at the United Nations headquarters in New York, Iravani unequivocally accused both the United States and Israel of deliberately targeting civilian populations. He contrasted this alleged strategy with Iran’s own approach, stating that when his nation retaliates, its operations are exclusively focused on military sites, thereby avoiding civilian areas.
Further elaborating on Iran’s operational principles, Iravani emphasized that Tehran has consistently refrained from targeting the interests of its neighboring countries. In light of this, he announced that an internal investigation would be launched to examine claims of strikes that may have inadvertently impacted non-military locations within Iran.
Addressing the possibility of such unintended strikes, Iravani offered a potential explanation, as quoted by Reuters. “Our initial assessment suggests that some of these incidents may have resulted from prevention or disruption by United States defense systems, which could have diverted targets from their intended military objectives,” he stated, hinting at complex interactions on the battlefield.
Shifting focus to a different form of alleged foreign intervention, Ambassador Iravani also responded pointedly to former U.S. President Donald Trump’s expressed desire to meddle in the selection of Iran’s new Supreme Leader. This political transition, as presented by Iravani, follows the reported death of Ali Khamenei due to attacks attributed to the United States and Israel.
Iravani vehemently condemned Trump’s inclination as a direct violation of the fundamental principle of non-intervention in the internal affairs of sovereign nations. He asserted with conviction, “The election of Iran’s leader will proceed entirely in accordance with our constitutional procedures and solely by the will of the Iranian people, without any foreign interference.”