Iran’s envoy in South Africa defends retaliatory attacks on US bases in the Middle East

The Iranian embassy in South Africa has defended the country’s targeting of American military installations in the escalating confrontation with the US and Israel. Tehran insists its actions fall within its right to self-defence under international law. “Our act is our inherent right,” ambassador Mansour Shakib Mehr told a media briefing in Pretoria on Wednesday.

“Our actions are directed at military bases used against us.” Iran respected the sovereignty of neighbouring Gulf states despite the presence of American military facilities on their territory, Mehr said, adding: “Our actions are directed at military bases used against us, not against those governments.” The briefing came as tension rose across the Middle East after weekend strikes by the US and Israel that killed Iran’s supreme leader and several senior commanders, triggering retaliatory attacks by Tehran against US military assets across the region. Israeli strikes have also hit civilian sites inside Iran, including schools and hospitals. In Minab, an attack on a girls’ school killed 183 schoolgirls, one of the deadliest civilian incidents since the conflict escalated.

Iran has accused Washington and Tel Aviv of launching what it describes as an unlawful act of aggression, arguing that the strikes violated international law and its sovereignty. Mehr said the attacks violated Article 2(4) of the United Nations Charter, which prohibited the use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of another state. Iran said its response fell within its right to self-defence under Article 51 of the UN Charter.

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“We did not start this war but we will defend our country,” he said. The escalation has raised fears of a wider regional conflict, particularly given the strategic importance of the Gulf to global energy markets. Military tension has intensified around the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow waterway through which roughly a fifth of the world’s oil supply passes each day.

Although Iran’s retaliation has focused on US military targets, the widening confrontation has heightened concerns that the conflict could draw additional countries into direct hostilities. Mehr responded to speculation about whether Iran might seek military assistance from allies such as Russia or China if the conflict escalated further, saying Tehran had not requested military support from other countries and believed it had the capacity to defend itself.

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