Iran’s supreme leader tackles Israel over “shameless crimes,” attacks on children, hospitals
Iran‘s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has joined growing voices to condemn Israel’s actions, following the detonation of handheld communication devices used by Hezbollah, saying they are committing “shameless crimes” against non-combatants, including children.
His remarks followed an Israeli airstrike in Beirut that killed 31 people, including three children and seven women.
Khamenei stated Israel is targeting “ordinary people” in Gaza, the West Bank, Lebanon, and Syria, unable to harm “real fighters.” He criticized Israel for attacking “small children, hospital patients, and schools.”
Earlier, the United Nations condemned the pager explosions, describing the bloody incident as a potential war crime and a violation of international law.
The attacks in Lebanon resulted in the deaths of at least 37 people and injured over 3,000 others.
While reacting to the violence, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk disclosed that “It is a war crime to commit violence intended to spread terror among civilians.”
Beirut and Hezbollah blame Israel for the attacks, alleging Israel placed explosive charges in imported pager devices and remotely detonated them.
Israel has remained silent, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office distancing itself from an incriminating social media post by his advisor, Topaz Luk.
The international community has condemned the attacks, with human rights groups warning they endanger civilian lives and violate laws of war.
The incident heightens tensions between Israel and Hezbollah amid the ongoing Gaza conflict, which has claimed over 41,300 lives since Hamas’s cross-border attack on October 7.
