US accused of stoking Middle East tensions
De-escalation and stepped-up peace efforts urged for Gaza conflict at UN
UNITED NATIONS — The United States was accused of stoking already high tensions in the Middle East conflict with its recent retaliatory strikes against Iraq and Syria, as the UN Security Council on Monday convened an emergency session to address the escalating conflict in Gaza.
The US military struck dozens of targets in Syria and Iraq overnight on Friday into Saturday, in retaliation to the Jan 28 drone attack on a base in Jordan that killed three US soldiers.
Council members expressed fears of a growing conflict in the Middle East and urged de-escalation and stepped-up peace efforts.
“It’s clear that American airstrikes are specifically, deliberately aimed to stoke the conflict,” said Russia’s UN Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia, whose country had called for the emergency meeting.
Nebenzia said the US violated international law and is continuing “to sow chaos and destruction in the Middle East”.
The Russian ambassador said the United States is attempting “to flex muscles … to justify and salvage the image of the current American administration … in the light of the upcoming presidential preelection campaign”.
China’s permanent representative to the UN, Zhang Jun, said that action taken by the US was creating new turmoil in the Middle East.
He said the fundamental reason for the current situation is the failure to implement a cease-fire in Gaza, which is a prerequisite for any progress, calling on all countries concerned to stop acting out of self-interest.
“The US actions will certainly exacerbate the vicious cycle of titfor-tat violence in the Middle East,” Zhang said.
Anger over Israel’s devastating campaign in Gaza — which began after Hamas’ surprise attack on Oct 7 — has grown across the Middle East, stoking violence involving militant groups in Lebanon, Iraq, Syria and Yemen.
Syria’s permanent representative to the UN, Koussay Aldahhak, said the arguments heard at the meeting were the “same flimsy pretexts and misleading claims the US administration is promoting to justify its repeated attacks”.
Algeria’s UN Ambassador Amar Bendjama, the Arab representative on the council, defended the sovereignty of Iraq and Syria and also said the US airstrikes “are likely to further exacerbate the already precarious situation”.
The Hamas Oct 7 attack killed about 1,160 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally.
Israel’s withering military campaign has killed at least 27,585 people in Gaza, mostly women and children, according to the health ministry in Gaza.
Human cost
UN political affairs chief Rosemary DiCarlo briefed the council, urging all parties to heed Secretary-General Antonio Guterres’ call “to step back from the brink and to consider the unbearable human and economic cost of a potential regional conflict”.
The US strikes have drawn criticism from the governments of Iraq and Syria, and also from Iran, which has denied any role in last month’s drone attack.
“Any attempt to attribute these actions to Iran or its armed forces is misleading, baseless and unacceptable,” Iran’s UN Ambassador Amir Saeid Iravani told the Council on Monday.
He pledged that if Iran faces “any threat, attack or aggression affecting its security”, it would “not hesitate to exercise its inherent rights … to respond firmly”.
The White House said on Sunday it plans more retaliatory action.
“Let me be clear, the United States does not desire more conflict in a region when we are actively working to contain and de-escalate the conflict in Gaza,” said US Deputy Ambassador Robert Wood.
He added: “We are not seeking a direct conflict with Iran, but we will continue to defend our personnel against unacceptable attacks. Period.”
Meanwhile, heavy strikes and fighting in Gaza killed at least 99 people overnight through Tuesday, mostly women and children, said the health ministry in Gaza that has been under almost four months of bombardment.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken visited Egypt on Tuesday, seeking a new cease-fire and “an enduring end” to the conflict.
Blinken — on his fifth regional tour since the bloodiest ever Gaza conflict broke out — was due to meet Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, a day after he held talks with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Riyadh.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, in a phone call, told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday that “only a negotiated two-state solution would open up the prospect of a sustainable solution to the Middle East conflict”.
For weeks, Yemen’s Houthis have been targeting what they say are Israel-linked ships in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden in solidarity with Palestinians.
The attacks on the vital shipping route have disrupted global trade and prompted reprisals by US and British forces, including strikes on two “explosive-laden drone boats” on Monday, according to the US military.
The Houthis said on Tuesday they struck US and British ships in two separate attacks, one of which was confirmed by a security firm.
The US actions will certainly exacerbate the vicious cycle of tit-for-tat violence in the Middle East.”
Zhang Jun,
China’s permanent representative to the UN