[pjw] NEWS: Hypocrisy of condeming Iran attack called out at UN (Politico 4/14)

[Peace and Justice Works]

Hello Iraq Affinity Group supporters

Most of you have probably heard by now about Iran sending hundreds of 
drones toward Israel yesterday as their response to the April 1 bombing of 
their consulate in Syria. I watched a lot of this unfold on Al Jazeera 
yesterday, and was taken aback at how rarely the building in Syria, which 
Iran correctly notes is technically its own soil-- was mentioned, though 
they did have a lot of good commentary. One person expressed surprise not 
that Iran hit within Israel (which I noted yesterday I did not expect) but 
rather that they didn't rely on their "proxies" to retaliate. I haven't 
seen definitively but found at least one article claiming some of the 
attack was launched from Syria, Yemen and Iraq. Luckily there are no 
reports of people being killed and only one I've seen so far of an injury.

That may be in part because Iran let both the US and Israel know when the 
drones were launched, giving them ample time to defend Israel.

A lot of commentators noted that the Iraqi prime minister will be meeting 
with Biden tomorrow (Monday). I wonder whether the escalation caused by 
the US' 51st state Israel and the vulnerability of US troops caught in the 
middle might speed up the withdrawal.

Israel "demanded" a meeting of the UN Security Council, which took place 
starting at 1 PM our time. Below is a Politico recap which both headlines 
the US demand to condemn Iran and Russia pointing out that their 
effort to get the Council to condemn the bombing of the consulate failed.

Secretary General Guterres called for de-escalation and "defusing," noting 
that further action by Israel would violate the UN Charter.

https://www.hindustantimes.com/world-news/time-to-defuse-and-de-escalate-un-chief-condemns-irans-attack-on-israel-101713130040824.html

Luckily, so far, President Biden has already said the US will not support 
any Israeli attack on Iran, but maybe I missed him saying "wink, wink."

https://www.axios.com/2024/04/14/biden-netanyahu-iran-israel-us-wont-support

OK, well, this is all very distressing but I am hoping that cooler heads 
prevail.

dan handelman
peace and justice works iraq affinity group

-----

https://www.politico.com/news/2024/04/14/us-warns-iran-calls-on-security-council-to-condemn-attack-on-israel-00152160
  US warns Iran, calls on Security Council to condemn attack on Israel
But Russia and Iran criticized the calls for deescalation as hypocritical.
By Mona Zhang 04/14/2024 07:00 PM EDT

The U.S. warned that Iran "will be held responsible" if it attempted 
further military action against Israel or the U.S. during an emergency 
meeting of the United Nations Security Council on Sunday.

"The United States is not seeking escalation," said U.S. Deputy Ambassador 
Robert Wood. "Our actions have been purely defensive in nature."

The U.S. called on the Security Council to condemn Iran's attack on Israel 
on Saturday. Wood echoed U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, who 
briefed the council during Sunday's emergency session.

"It's time to step back from the brink," Guterres said. "We have a shared 
responsibility to actively engage all parties concerned to prevent further 
escalation."

Russia and Iran criticized the calls for de-escalation as hypocritical, 
pointing out that the U.S., U.K. and France blocked a Russian-penned 
Security Council press statement earlier this month that would have 
condemned Israel's apparent airstrike on Iran's consulate in Syria.

We're witnessing "a display of hypocrisy and double standards which is 
almost embarrassing to watch," said Vasily Nebenzya, Russia's United 
Nations envoy.

The emergency session did not yield an official statement from the 
Security Council, but Vanessa Frazier of Malta, which holds the UNSC 
presidency this month, told reporters after the meeting that she believed 
the session contributed to deescalating heightened tensions in the region.

"The message around the Council table was very, very clear -- that there 
should be no further escalation," Frazier said.

Iran's long-anticipated airstrike on Israel on Saturday ratchets up 
tensions in the region, as the U.S. tows a line between its support for 
Israel while avoiding an escalation in the region.

American officials are urging Israel to exercise restraint in its 
response, with President Joe Biden telling Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin 
Netanyahu that the U.S. would not join an Israeli counter-strike.

Iran's Ambassador to the United Nations Amir Saeid Iravani said on Sunday 
that Tehran wants to avoid the expansion of conflict, but would defend 
itself if the U.S. initiated military operations against Iran.

Iran's airstrike was almost entirely thwarted by Israel's air defense 
systems, which were bolstered by its collaboration with allies the U.S., 
Britain and France. Jordan also intercepted drones and missiles that went 
into its airspace, Reuters reported. Some U.S. officials saw the attack as 
a way for Iran to save face and that Tehran did not want an escalation.