UN Rapporteur: US & Israel Are Destroying World Peace & Order

United Nations officials have issued stark warnings over the consequences of U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran, with a special rapporteur accusing Washington and Tel Aviv of undermining global order and the secretary-general urging an immediate return to diplomacy.

Balakrishnan Rajagopal, the UN special rapporteur on the right to housing, said the attacks amounted to a broader assault on international stability.

“I strongly deplore the attack on Iran by US and Israel and the cowardly complicity of States who approve this or stay silent,” he wrote on X.

He added that “so many innocents will die and people’s homes destroyed because of this,” concluding that “US-Israel are destroying world peace and order.”

The remarks came after the United States and Israel launched a joint military operation against Iran early Saturday, citing threats posed by the Iranian government. The strikes followed the conclusion Thursday of a round of U.S.-Iran nuclear talks in Geneva, which both sides had described as serious and constructive under Omani mediation.

Addressing an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council, Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said the escalation poses “a grave threat to international peace and security.”

He expressed regret that “this opportunity of diplomacy has been squandered,” referring to the Geneva talks.

“Military action carries the risk of igniting a chain of events that no one can control in the most volatile region of the world,” Guterres said.

He stressed that “International law and international humanitarian law must always be respected,” and urged all parties to “return immediately to the negotiating table, notably on the Iranian nuclear program.”

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk echoed the call for restraint on Saturday, saying: “I deplore the military strikes across Iran this morning by Israel and the United States of America, and the subsequent retaliatory strikes by Iran.”

He warned that “in any armed conflict, it is civilians who end up paying the ultimate price,” adding, “Bombs and missiles are not the way to resolve differences.”

Turk urged all parties to de-escalate and return to the “negotiating table,” noting that diplomatic efforts had been underway only hours before hostilities intensified.

The current crisis unfolds against the backdrop of previous confrontations, including U.S. strikes on three Iranian nuclear sites during a 12-day Israel-Iran conflict last June.