Tehran espouses Qatar’s self-defense right after Israeli onslaught
Iran’s ambassador and permanent representative to the United Nations strongly condemned on Thursday a recent aggression by the Israeli regime against Qatar, saying Tehran resolutely advocates for Doha’s right to self-defense over the deadly attack.
“The Islamic Republic of Iran unequivocally and decisively condemns the terrorist aggression and armed attacks by the Zionist regime against the government of Qatar, which resulted in the martyrdom and injury of a number of Palestinian and Qatari civilians, and declares the solidarity and support of the Islamic Republic of Iran with the government of Qatar,” Amir Saeed Iravani said.
Iravani made the remarks in a statement prepared for an emergency session of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) to discuss Israel’s September 9 strikes on the Qatari capital of Doha, which assassinated several top officials of Palestinian Hamas resistance group as well as Qatari civilians.
“Iran firmly supports the right of the government of Qatar to legitimate self-defense, based on international law and the UN Charter, in response to such reckless violations, and affirms its right to take all necessary political, diplomatic, and legal measures to protect its citizens, sovereignty, and territorial integrity.”
The Iranian diplomat underlined that the Israeli attack on Qatar and other regional countries is a clear violation of the fundamental principles of the UN Charter and international law.
“The continuation of the Zionist regime's genocide in occupied Palestine, its repeated aggressive and terrorist actions against Lebanon, Syria, and Yemen, its criminal attack against Iran, and now its military attack on Qatar, show that this regime is an immediate and real threat to regional and international peace and security,” Iravani said.
Qatar has been a key regional mediator in negotiations between Hamas and Israel, whose prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, threatened on Wednesday to try to kill Hamas leaders in Qatar again if Doha "does not expel" the group’s officials.
Hamas confirmed that its senior negotiators survived the attack, but five members of the group were killed. Qatari security officer Badr Saad Muhammad Al-Humaidi was also among those killed in the Israeli attacks on Monday.
The Israeli attack was condemned by world leaders and international rights organizations.
Qatar's prime minister called for Netanyahu to be "brought to justice" over the Israeli violation of international laws.
"I think that what Netanyahu has done yesterday, he just killed any hope for those hostages," Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani told CNN.
Doha is "reassessing everything" around their involvement in future cease-fire talks and discussing next steps with Washington, he added in comments cited in CNN's live blog after an interview with the broadcaster.
Qatar has hosted Hamas's political bureau since 2012, and has been a key mediator in Gaza talks alongside Egypt and the United States.
Israel's ambassador to the United Nations, Danny Danon, sought to justify the decision, telling an Israeli radio station, "It was not an attack on Qatar; it was an attack on Hamas."
Hamas political bureau member Hossam Badran said Israel "represents a real danger to the security and stability of the region.”
"It is in an open war with everyone, not just with the Palestinian people," he said.