A geopolitical wake-up call for India
US aircraft and missile destroyers helped Israeli forces in the interception of the Iranian missiles earlier too.
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NDTV
12 minutes ago
- NDTV
"Netanyahu Dragged US Into Costly Baseless War": Iran To UN After Strikes
The US and Iran clashed at the emergency meeting of the UN Security Council on Monday after the American warplanes and submarines attacked three main Iranian nuclear sites. Speaking at briefing on "Threats to International Peace and Security", the acting US ambassador to the UN, Dorothy Shea, said the American forces struck nuclear facilities in Fordow, Natanz, and Esfahan on Sunday with the aim of "dismantling" Iran's nuclear enrichment capacity and stopping the nuclear threat posed by the "world's foremost state sponsor of terror". "This operation sought to eliminate a longstanding but rapidly escalating source of global insecurity, and to aid our ally Israel in our inherent right of collective self-defence consistent with the UN Charter," she said. She said that Iran has "long obfuscated" its nuclear weapons program and "stonewalled good-faith efforts" in recent negotiations. Ms Shea said that for 40 years, the Iranian government has called for "Death to America" and "Death to Israel" and posed a "constant menace" to the peace and security of its neighbours, the US, and the entire world. "Iran has attacked Israel with hundreds of ballistic missiles and through terrorist proxies. For decades, Iran has been responsible for misery and countless deaths across the Middle East. Iran's government and its proxies have also killed numerous Americans, including American service members in Iraq and Afghanistan. In recent weeks, Iranian officials have intensified their hostile bluster and rhetoric," she added. She said the Iranian regime cannot have a nuclear weapon, and warned that Iran "should not escalate". "As President (Donald) Trump said, any Iranian attack - direct or indirect - against Americans or American bases will be met with devastating retaliation," she said. Iran Slams US, Israel After Nuclear Sites Bombed Amir Saeid Iravani, Iran's representative to the UN, said the US strikes were "a blatant crime" and accused Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of drawing Mr Trump into the conflict, which began when the Israeli military attacked Iran's nuclear sites and scientists on June 13. Mr Iravani said that the US "decided to destroy diplomacy," and that the Iranian armed forces will decide the "timing, nature and scale" of a "proportionate response." "The internationally wanted war criminal Netanyahu succeeded in hijacking US foreign policy, dragging the United States into yet another costly, baseless war," the Iranian delegate said. "Today, another stain was recorded in the political history of the United States," he said, referring to the US strikes. He said that it is "profoundly heartbreaking" that one of the founders of the UN, with over 5,000 years of culture and civilisation, and a "responsible party" to the UN Charter and the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, has been under armed attack by an "illegitimate regime". He said the US, a permanent Security Council member, depository of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), and the only State that has ever used nuclear weapons - "murdering millions in two cities" - has now once again resorted to illegal force. Mr Iravani said that Israel, "an outlaw nuclear armed regime that refused to join the NPT", has for decades promoted the "false narrative" that Iran is on the cusp of acquiring a nuclear weapon, without a "shred of evidence". "This is a historic test for this Council, for the United Nations as a whole. If this Council fails to act and condemn this blatant aggression, the stain of complicity will forever remain on its conscience, as it does with Gaza," he said. Israel Defends Attacks On Iranian Nuclear Sites Israel's Ambassador to the UN, Danny Danon, defended the US strikes and said that "history changed" last night. "The United States, the leader of the free world, removed the greatest existential threat facing the free world. Just like our operation Rising Lion, this was not a war of choice. This action was a necessity. It was a righteous act for the United States, for Israel, for the Middle East, and for the world," he told the Security Council. "Let the record show that when the world stood at the edge of a nuclear disaster, America stepped forward. When time ran out, America showed courage. And when the moment came to confront the forces of extinction, America led. Now, it is time for the rest of the world to guarantee that the threat of a nuclear Iran never returns," he added. He also said that Tehran used the negotiating table as "camouflage, a delay tactic, a way to buy time" while building missiles and enriching uranium. "Make no mistake, the cost of inaction would have been catastrophic. A nuclear Iran would have been a death sentence just as much for you as it would have for us," he said. Mr Danon also charged that Iran's "reach" extends far beyond Israel's borders. "It arms militias in Iraq. It commands terror in Lebanon. It funds the Houthis in Yemen. It plots murder in Europe. And it threatens every capital in the West with its growing arsenal of ballistic missiles." UN Chief On US Bombings UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said the bombing of Iranian nuclear facilities by the US marks a "perilous turn" in a region that "cannot endure another cycle of destruction". "We must act immediately and decisively to halt the fighting and return to serious, sustained negotiations on the Iran nuclear program. We need a credible, comprehensive and verifiable solution, one that restores trust," he said. We face a stark choice amid the escalation in the Middle East. One way leads to wider war, deeper suffering & serious damage to the international order. The other leads to de-escalation, diplomacy & dialogue. We know which way is right. We cannot & must not give up on peace. — António Guterres (@antonioguterres) June 22, 2025 "We face a stark choice amid the escalation in the Middle East. One way leads to wider war, deeper suffering and serious damage to the international order. The other leads to de-escalation, diplomacy & dialogue. We know which way is right," he said. UN Nuclear Watchdog Confirms US Strikes UN nuclear watchdog chief Rafael Grossi said the "dramatic" events in Iran have become even more serious with US bombings and the potential widening of the conflict. He said that entrances to tunnels used to store part of Iran's enriched uranium stockpile at the Esfahan nuclear complex were hit in US military strikes. In a statement to the UN Security Council, Mr Grossi also said that craters were visible at the Fordow site, Iran's main location for enriching uranium to 60%. I just addressed the @UN Security Council #UNSC on the situation in Iran. If the window for diplomacy closes, violence and destruction could reach unthinkable levels, and the global non-proliferation regime could crumble and fall. My full statement: — Rafael Mariano Grossi (@rafaelmgrossi) June 22, 2025 He also said the Fuel Enrichment Plant at the Natanz enrichment site was "hit again". "Any special measures by Iran to protect its nuclear materials and equipment can be done in accordance with Iran's safeguards obligations and the agency. This is possible," Mr Grossi said.
India Today
16 minutes ago
- India Today
Trump boasts of ‘monumental damage' to Iran's nuke sites, calls it bullseye strike
Donald Trump on Monday reiterated that US forces struck deep inside Iran early on Sunday, causing "monumental damage" to the country's nuclear sites and called it a bullseye strike and an obliteration of the Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan nuclear facilities. The strikes came as a major escalation and the first direct US military involvement in the conflict alongside Israel."Monumental Damage was done to all Nuclear sites in Iran, as shown by satellite images. Obliteration is an accurate term! The white structure shown is deeply imbedded into the rock, with even its roof well below ground level, and completely shielded from flame. The biggest damage took place far below ground level. Bullseye!!!," Trump posted from his Truth Social The US deployed powerful bunker-buster bombs on the Fordow nuclear facility, located deep inside a mountain. After more than a week of Israeli assaults targeting Iran's air defence systems and missile infrastructure, Trump ordered airstrikes on Iran with the aim to cripple Tehran's nuclear a post on Truth Social on Sunday, Trump sai, "We have completed our very successful attack on the three nuclear sites in Iran, including Fordow, Natanz, and Esfahan. All planes are now outside of Iran airspace. A full payload of BOMBS was dropped on the primary site, Fordow. All planes are safely on their way home," he that evening, US Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth called the offensive a huge success, claiming the Middle East country's nuclear programme was "devastated" and "obliterated".advertisement
Mint
22 minutes ago
- Mint
Asaduddin Owaisi slams Pakistan for Trump Nobel pitch as US bombs Iran, calls Netanyahu 'butcher of Palestinians'
AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi slammed Pakistan's pitch for a Nobel Peace Prize for US President Donald Trump, following America's airstrikes on Iran's key nuclear facilities. Owaisi, the Hyderabad Member of Parliament, also slammed the US and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, calling him the 'butcher of Palestinians.' The Lok Sabha MP questioned whether Pakistan had supported Trump only to see him drop bombs on a sovereign nation. "We should ask Pakistanis if for this they want Trump to get a Nobel Peace Prize..." Owaisi told news agency ANI in Hyderabad, referring to the strikes carried out by the United States on Iran's nuclear sites in Natanz, Isfahan, and Fordow. The government of Pakistan said in a statement on the social media platform X last week that it would nominate Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize as reported by several media outlets in the US, including The Hill. The AIMIM leader further mocked Pakistan's military leadership. "...Did Pakistan's General (Army chief Asim Munir) have lunch with the US president for this? They all have been exposed today," he said on June 22. The US officials said on Sunday that the country's military "obliterated" Iran's main nuclear sites using14 bunker-buster bombs, more than two dozen Tomahawk missiles and over 125 military aircraft. The strikes mark an escalation in the ongoing Middle Eastern conflict, with Israel beginning to strike Iran on June 13. Israeli strikes on Iran have so far killed at least 950 people, wounded 3,450 others, news agency AP quoted a human rights group as saying. Iran has said that the United States decided to destroy diplomacy with its strikes on the country's nuclear programme and that the Iranian military will decide the 'timing, nature and scale of Iran's proportionate response.' Slamming Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Owaisi said, "This attack by the US has helped Netanyahu, who is a butcher of Palestinians... A genocide is happening in Gaza, and the US is not worried about it." He said, "This man (Netanyahu), he has butchered Palestinians... He is doing ethnic cleansing of Palestinians in the West Bank and in Gaza. History will remember him as the butcher of Palestinians." Owaisi also warned of serious consequences for India if a full-scale war breaks out in the region. "We must also remember that more than 16 million Indians live in the Gulf and Middle East, and if that area erupts in a war, which unfortunately is very likely, then it will have a grave impact on the Indians living there," he told ANI. This attack by the US has helped Netanyahu, who is a butcher of Palestinians... A genocide is happening in Gaza, and the US is not worried about it. The MP said the region was vital for India's economy. "The investments which Indian companies have made in all these Arab countries or Gulf countries, and a substantial amount of foreign investment comes from this area," he added. Calling the nuclear threat from Iran a "bogey," Owaisi said, "And lastly, this bogey has been created about Iran having nuclear weapons, or this and that, the same thing was used in Iraq, Weapons of Mass Destruction. Nothing, nothing came out." Key Takeaways Owaisi highlights the contradiction in Pakistan's Nobel nomination for Trump against the backdrop of U.S. military aggression. The ongoing conflict in the Middle East poses potential risks for Indian nationals and investments in the region. The rhetoric around Iran's nuclear capabilities mirrors past narratives used in the Iraq conflict.
