Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian hit back at US President Donald Trump during his UN General Assembly address, rejecting the characterisation of Iran as a terrorist state. He said Iran itself had been the target of terrorism and accused the US and Israel of carrying out attacks on Iranian territory.
"Yesterday, the US President described us as terrorists. We have been the victims of terrorism," Pezeshkian said.
Pezeshkian also held up photographs of victims of the Minab school attack during his address, using the images to highlight the innocent civilians killed in the conflict. The Iranian President displayed pages showing graves and photographs of children and other victims as he spoke about attacks on Iranian civilians.
While Pezeshkian was delivering his address, the US delegation walked out of the UN General Assembly hall. This comes a day after Trump issued a stark warning to Iran during his UN General Assembly address, saying he faced a choice between reaching a deal with Tehran and "annihilat(ing) the Islamic Republic" if the conflict could not be resolved through negotiations. Trump also said he could drive Iran "into hell with no chance of survival".
The Iranian President referred to the assassination of Iran's Supreme Leader and attacks on Iranian civilians and institutions while making his case.
"I come from an Iran in which our esteemed Supreme Leader was assassinated without any legal framework or reason," he said.
"I come from an Iran where, in truth, they bombed a school. You see these children? These children perished under bombs with weapons used by the US and Israel."
"They were innocent and had committed no crimes."
Responding to the attacks, Pezeshkian said Iran had defended itself but claimed its forces had avoided deliberately targeting civilians. "Our innocent people have been the targets of cowardly attacks imposed upon our country. We defended ourselves with the utmost strength," he said.
"America and Israel attacked us with the latest technology. They hit us, but we didn’t bend the knee."
PEZESHKIAN ACCUSES ISRAEL OF 'TERRORISM'
The Iranian President also accused Israel of targeting civilian infrastructure, including universities, healthcare centres, schools and hospitals.
"We responded, but we did not hit civilian populations," he said.
He also pointed to the situation in Gaza, saying, "In Gaza, over 80,000 innocent civilians have been brutally murdered."
"They are committing genocide by using the so-called technologies that they have at their disposal. Then, they label others as terrorists," Pezeshkian said.
"Are we the sources of instability? We only seek to live independently."
PEZESHKIAN DEFENDS IRAN'S MILITARY RESPONSE
Highlighting Iran's position, Pezeshkian said the country had not attacked another nation or territory for two centuries but had consistently defended itself when threatened. He questioned why Iran was now being portrayed as a source of instability in the region and labelled as a terrorist state.
Rejecting any suggestion that Iran sought regional dominance, Pezeshkian said Tehran did not want to use its power for hegemony or seek its own security at the expense of other countries.
The development came hours after US and Iranian officials held a three-hour meeting on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York. US special envoy Steve Witkoff and senior presidential adviser Jared Kushner took part in the talks, while Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi represented Tehran, with mediators shuttling between the two sides. Trump described the meeting as "very good" and "very productive".
However, the talks did not produce an immediate agreement or breakthrough.
