The US, Britain and the EU called for “de-escalation” after Israel on Saturday hit military targets across Iran in deadly retaliatory strikes as Muslim countries and Russia blamed Israel for exacerbating the conflict.
United Nations chief Antonio Guterres said he was “deeply alarmed” by the deadly air strikes, urging an end to the wider conflict in the Middle East.
The United States urged Iran to stop attacking Israel and break the cycle of violence “without further escalation”. Israel’s “response was an exercise in self-defence and specifically avoided populated areas and focused solely on military targets, contrary to Iran’s attack against Israel that targeted Israel’s most populous city,” National Security Council spokesman Sean Savett said.
Russia urged all sides to exercise restraint and warned of a “catastrophic scenario”. Saudi Arabia condemned Israel and warned against any further expansion of the conflict in the Middle East. Qatar said “Israel’s targeting” of Iran is “a flagrant violation of Iran’s sovereignty and a clear breach of the principles of international law”.
Bahrain, which normalised relations with Israel in 2020, condemned the “military operation” against Iran, expressing “deep concern over the continued escalation of tensions” in the region. While Syria expressed its “solidarity” with its ally Iran, Iraq accused Israel of expanding conflict in the Middle East.
Jordan said the strikes were “in violation of international law and (Iran’s) sovereignty, and a dangerous escalation that leads to more tension.” Turkey condemned Israel’s strikes on Iran and called for an end to what it said was Israel’s “terror” in the region.
