Iran President Shows Khamenei Photo at UN, Attacks US & Israel

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian used his address at the UN General Assembly in New York on Wednesday to launch a sharp verbal assault on the United States and Israel, responding to President Donald Trump's repeated threats to destroy the Iranian regime.

The speech marked Pezeshkian's first appearance on an international stage since the outbreak of Operation Lion's Roar in February. As he began his remarks, which were broadcast live, the American delegation to the UN rose and walked out of the hall in a pointed demonstration.

At the heart of his address, the Iranian president rejected Trump's characterization of Iran as a terrorist state, insisting forcefully that the Islamic Republic is in fact the victim rather than the aggressor. Pezeshkian referenced an assassination attempt on Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei on the war's first day and blamed Washington for the bombing of a school in the Iranian city of Minab that same morning, which Tehran claims killed more than 175 girls. During his remarks, Pezeshkian held up a photograph of Khamenei as well as images of the destroyed school.

According to the Iranian president, in contrast to actions attributed to Washington and Israel that killed numerous civilians, his country has been careful to strike only military targets. He claimed Iran has not harmed civilian populations and that its military responses have been solely for self-defense against aggression forced upon it. He also pointed an accusing finger at the international community for what he called a double standard, warning that while Israel possesses atomic bombs without close supervision, inspectors from the International Atomic Energy Agency are sent exclusively to monitor Iran's nuclear program, which he described as intended for energy purposes only.

The Iranian president addressed Trump directly, declaring that threats and sanctions will only strengthen the Iranian nation's resolve, while clarifying that his country is prepared for dialogue and diplomacy but will never accept the language of force. He also repeated his country's position that resolving the Palestinian issue is a necessary condition for any stable peace in the region, describing the situation in "Palestine" as an open wound testifying to the failure of international mechanisms.

Alongside developments at the UN, sharp responses arrived from the Washington administration. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio categorically rejected the Iranian claims, emphasizing in his response that a state that slaughters tens of thousands of its own citizens and consistently finances regional terror organizations is in no position to lecture about human rights. Rubio reiterated America's position on the nuclear issue, stating that independent enrichment facilities in the hands of an entity financing global terror constitute an unacceptable threat.