Iran asks UN Security Council to recognize Israel, US as ‘initiators’ of 12-day war

Iran asked the UN Security Council (UNSC) on Sunday to recognize Israel and the US as the "initiators" of the recent attacks on the country.

"We solemnly request that the Security Council recognize the Israeli regime and the United States as the initiators of the act of aggression and their subsequent responsibility therefor, including compensation and reparation," Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said in a letter to UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres cited by the semi-official Tasnim news agency.

"The Security Council should also hold the aggressors accountable and prevent the recurrence of such heinous and serious crimes to enable it to maintain international peace and security," the letter reads.

"It should be noted that political and military leaders who order an act of aggression are also individually liable for the international crime of aggression under customary international law."

A 12-day conflict between Israel and Iran erupted on June 13 when Israel launched airstrikes on Iranian military, nuclear, and civilian sites, killing at least 606 people and injuring 5,332, according to Iran's Health Ministry.

The US also bombed three Iranian nuclear facilities in Fordo, Natanz and Isfahan, in an escalation of the conflict.

Tehran launched retaliatory missile and drone strikes on Israel, killing at least 29 people and wounding more than 3,400, according to figures released by the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.

The conflict came to a halt under a US-sponsored ceasefire that took effect on June 24.