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.
“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.
But he warned that continued escalation risked destabilising the broader region, telling journalists: “This aggression is not merely an attack on Iran, it is an assault on the entire region.”
Tehran believed the UN and other international bodies had a responsibility to respond to what it viewed as unlawful military aggression, Mehr said.
He also rejected allegations circulating in South African political discourse that Iran had funded the country’s genocide case against Israel at the International Court of Justice.
The claim has appeared periodically in political commentary and on social media since Pretoria filed its case against Israel in December 2023, arguing that Tel Aviv’s Israel’s military campaign in Gaza violated the Genocide Convention.
“That is a rumour that is being circulated,” Mehr said when asked about the allegation, calling South Africa’s move a courageous act. “The case was filed by the government of South Africa. If anyone has evidence of such allegations, they should present it.”
The case has become one of the most prominent international legal challenges to Israel’s conduct in the war in Gaza.
Asked about Iranian operations in the Gulf and whether neighbouring countries hosting US military bases could be drawn more directly into the conflict, Mehr reiterated that Tehran respected the sovereignty of neighbouring states and did not consider them adversaries.
He said US military facilities operating from their territory would be treated as legitimate targets if they were used to launch attacks against Tehran, adding that Iranian officials had communicated with governments in the region to clarify the scope of its military response.
Mehr said Iran had warned civilians to avoid military installations that could become targets during the conflict. Iran has indicated it is prepared to continue responding to attacks on its territory.
He said Tehran believed diplomacy could eventually help prevent further escalation.
“The path to stability is respect for international law,” he said.“Without that, the region will continue to face instability.”
Ambassador Mansour Shakib Mehr said Tehran’s actions ‘are directed at military bases used against us’
