World Must Act Decisively to End Israeli Genocide and Uphold Dignity of Victims

TEHRAN (Iran News) In his address on Tuesday, local time, the senior Iranian diplomat reaffirmed Iran’s highest-level commitment to combating genocide and preventing its recurrence. “As one of the co-sponsors of the UN General Assembly resolution establishing this day, we pay tribute to the dignity of all victims whose suffering compels the international community to act with moral clarity and conviction,” Iravani said.

He stressed that preventing genocide is not merely an aspirational goal but a binding obligation enshrined in international law and a profound duty to humanity. “It is our collective responsibility to prevent genocide wherever and whenever threats arise, and to ensure that perpetrators are held accountable,” Iravani emphasized. He further highlighted that all UN member states have a universal obligation to prevent and punish genocide and must refrain from any assistance or complicity in such crimes. “The prohibition against genocide is a peremptory norm of international law—no state has the right to ignore, weaken, or selectively apply it. Justice must be relentlessly pursued, as impunity only perpetuates further atrocities,” he said.

Iravani also praised the work of the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territories, which has produced deeply concerning findings regarding Israeli actions in Gaza, some of which have been assessed as falling within the threshold of genocide.

The Iranian envoy condemned Israel for repeatedly and openly challenging international law and violating humanitarian and human rights norms in ways thoroughly documented by UN mechanisms. He cited the advisory opinion of the International Court of Justice, which recognized the actions against the Palestinian people in Gaza as genocide. Iravani detailed that Israeli military operations have resulted in unprecedented civilian casualties, systematic destruction of health and education systems, imposition of total blockade and starvation, widespread sexual violence and torture, targeting of women and children, attacks on cultural and religious sites, and obstruction of humanitarian relief efforts.

“These crimes cannot be justified, minimized, or concealed,” he stressed. Iravani also called out certain Western media outlets for distorting facts and using inhumane rhetoric to justify Israel’s genocidal acts. “As Special Rapporteur Ms. Al-Banizeh has noted, many Western governments, while hiding behind diplomacy, have facilitated, legitimized, and ultimately normalized this genocidal campaign, reproducing colonial narratives and misrepresentations of international law by the Israeli regime,” Iravani said.

The ambassador emphasized that genocide cannot be eradicated by silence. “Our voice for justice matters. The suffering of genocide victims must transform our collective grief into a unified, determined resolve to end this crime once and for all,” he stated.

Iravani called on the United Nations to lead these efforts not merely through commemorative events but through the moral will and commitment of all member states. “The world must act decisively, collectively, and immediately to end genocide and honor the dignity of its victims,” he urged.

The International Day of Commemoration and Dignity of Victims of Genocide was established by the UN General Assembly to honor victims and reinforce the global commitment to prevent and punish genocide. Genocide, defined by the 1948 UN Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, includes acts committed with the intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial, or religious group. The international legal framework obligates states to prevent and punish genocide, making silence or inaction a violation of these norms.

Iravani’s remarks come amid escalating international concern over the humanitarian situation in Gaza, where ongoing military operations, blockades, and civilian casualties have drawn global attention. By framing the issue in the context of genocide, Iran is seeking to galvanize international mechanisms and accountability, emphasizing the legal and moral duties of all states under international law.