GENEVA, March 25 - Gulf Arab states addressed the U.N. Human Rights Council on Wednesday to denounce Iranian strikes they say have targeted energy and civilian infrastructure across the Gulf, creating what delegations described as an existential threat to both international and regional security.
Speaking at the Geneva-based forum, Kuwait's ambassador Naser Abdullah H. M. Alhayen said the attacks represent a direct challenge to sovereign borders and established law. "We are seeing an existential threat to international and regional security. This aggressive approach is undermining international law and sovereignty," he told the 47-member council.
Delegations from other Gulf countries echoed Kuwait's condemnation, characterizing the strikes as actions intended to spread terror. The nearly month-long U.S.-Israeli war on Iran has, according to statements made at the council, prompted large-scale Iranian retaliation in the form of drone and missile strikes on energy and civilian infrastructure in Gulf countries, killing civilians and driving up oil prices.
Members of the council are preparing to vote on a motion that would condemn Iran's strikes, seek reparations, and ask the U.N. rights chief to monitor developments in the affected areas. The action item reflects concern among member states about the humanitarian and security consequences of the ongoing exchanges.
Iran defended its actions during the session, asserting a high civilian toll from the initial U.S.-Israeli operations. According to the Iranian delegation, "more than 1,500 civilians had been killed in the U.S.-Israeli strikes so far." Iran's ambassador to the U.N. in Geneva, Ali Bahreini, framed Tehran's campaign as defensive and outward-looking in its justification, saying: "We fight on behalf of all of you against an enemy that, if not restrained today, will be beyond containment tomorrow."
Separately, Iran has called for its own emergency session focused on a fatal strike on a primary school; that session is scheduled to take place on Friday, according to statements made at the council.
United Nations' top rights official Volker Turk urged an immediate end to the conflict, describing the situation as extremely dangerous and unpredictable. "This conflict has an unprecedented power to ensnare countries across borders and around the world," he said. He also stressed the protection of civilians, warning: "Attacks on civilians and civilian infrastructure must end. If they are deliberate, such attacks may constitute war crimes."
The council's vote and subsequent monitoring decisions will determine whether the U.N. formalizes oversight of the strikes and pursues avenues for reparations, while the competing emergency sessions underscore the polarized response among member states.