Resolution on Red Sea produced by U.S. seeks to defend Israel: official

January 13, 2024 - 22:53

TEHRAN- According to the Iranian Foreign Ministry, the United Nations Security Council just adopted a resolution on the Red Sea that was authored by the U.S. and is intended to shield Israel and its genocide against Gaza.

On Wednesday, the UN Security Council approved the draft resolution offered by the United States and Japan calling for an immediate halt to Yemeni attacks on Israeli-owned or Israeli-bound ships in the Red Sea.

According to Nasser Kanaani, the spokesman for the Iranian Foreign Ministry, the resolution “apparently focuses on the rights and freedom of navigation in the Red Sea, but its main objective is to legitimize the U.S.-led naval coalition in order to achieve specific political goals and create the needed shield to allow Israel to continue its war crimes in Gaza.”

He mentioned that the U.S. “put pressure” on the Security Council members in order for the resolution to be approved.

Additionally, Kanaani pointed out that the U.S. envoy’s comments during the UNSC meeting on “freedom of navigation” in the Red Sea were intended to deflect criticism from Israel’s continuous crimes against Palestinians in Gaza.

Furthermore, he called the U.S. claims “baseless” and cautioned Washington against acting in a way that would jeopardize the security and stability of the region by “provocative, irresponsible” measures.

The UNSC was also urged by the spokesperson to take accountability and deal with the underlying issues that fuel tensions in the Red Sea.

Kanaani drew a parallel between Washington’s position on the pro-Israel resolution and its vetoing of UNSC resolutions calling for a ceasefire in Gaza, noting that the resolution was part of the U.S.'s steadfast support for Israel.

“Instead of taking a decisive action to stop the crimes committed by the Israeli regime, the U.S. administration is still supporting the regime politically, militarily … and diplomatically,” Kanaani said, urging the UNSC to “immediately” take “decisive” measures to force Israel to stop the war in Gaza.

Yemen said that until the regime’s murderous attack on Gaza is over and the closure placed on the strip is removed, it would keep up its retaliatory operations against ships in the Red Sea that are associated with Israel.

The Tel Aviv regime has killed at least 23,469 Palestinians and wounded about 60,000 others since Israel launched its invasion of Gaza.

Also on Friday, Kanaani emphasized that the “arbitrary attacks will have no result other than fueling insecurity and instability in the region” in Iran’s initial response to the aggression.

“These military attacks are carried out in line with the continuation of the full support of the United States and the United Kingdom for the last hundred days of the Zionist regime's war crimes against the Palestinian nation and the oppressed citizens under the complete siege of the Gaza Strip,” he said.

Kanaani added, “While the Zionist regime continues its attacks and war crimes in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank in Palestine, the United States and England are trying to divert the attention of the people of the world away from the crimes of this fake, criminal and aggressor regime against the people of Palestine by expanding their umbrella of support for the Zionist regime.”

Kanaani called on the international community to take appropriate responses and measures to stop the development of conflict, instability, and insecurity in the region, expressing his worry about the effects of such arbitrary acts on regional and global peace and security.

Earlier, Iran’s Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian described Yemen as part of the West Asian region’s realities and security.