Detainees freed from prison after airstrikes in western Iran - rights group

Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has written to UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres urging the United Nations and world foreign ministers to take action over the US and Israeli military strikes on Iran.

In the letter, which was also sent to the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights and foreign ministers worldwide, Araghchi said the attacks were a “clear violation of international humanitarian law.”

He urged the UN secretary-general, the Security Council and other relevant international bodies to take “immediate, tangible and effective measures” to condemn the attacks, prevent their continuation and help bring those responsible to justice.

China urged the United States and Israel to immediately cease military action against Iran and warned that regional turmoil could harm the global economy, including energy flows through the Strait of Hormuz.

China’s foreign minister said Beijing supports Iran in safeguarding its sovereignty, security and territorial integrity, and is willing to play a constructive role in promoting peace and stopping the war.

The minister also held calls with his Iranian, French and Omani counterparts to discuss the situation, according to Chinese state media.

US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said on Monday the conflict with Iran “is not Iraq” and would not become an endless war, describing current operations as limited and focused on eliminating specific military threats.

“This is not endless,” Hegseth said at a news conference, adding that the mission was “clear, devastating and decisive” and aimed at destroying Iran’s offensive missile capabilities, missile production and naval assets so that it will “never have nuclear weapons.”

Hegseth accused Iran of pursuing nuclear ambitions while building what he called a conventional shield of missiles and drones, and said US forces were striking “surgically, overwhelmingly and unapologetically.”

He said Washington’s objectives were “realistic” and centered on defending US forces, allies and shipping lanes, not regime change or nation-building.

“This is not a so-called regime change war,” he said. “We fight to win, and we don’t waste time or lives.”

US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said on Monday that “crazy regimes like Iran, hell-bent on prophetic Islamist delusions, cannot have nuclear weapons,” as he defended a major US military operation against Tehran ordered by President Donald Trump.

Speaking at a news conference, Hegseth said the operation, launched two days ago under Trump’s direct orders, was “the most lethal, most complex and most precise aerial operation in history.”

He accused Iran’s leadership of waging what he called a decades-long war against the United States through proxy forces and attacks on US targets in the Middle East.

“We didn’t start this war, but under President Trump, we are finishing it,” Hegseth said.

“If you kill Americans, if you threaten Americans anywhere on Earth, we will hunt you down without apology and without hesitation, and we will kill you,” he added.

Hegseth said Trump had drawn a clear line after years of what he called Iranian belligerence and reiterated that Washington would not allow Tehran to obtain nuclear weapons.

Iran’s cultural heritage minister said the UNESCO-listed Golestan Palace in Tehran sustained damage in recent US-Israeli air strikes and that Tehran will submit a formal report to UNESCO.

Visiting the site, Minister Reza Salehi-Amiri said the damage to the complex was an attack not only on a building but on "Iran’s cultural and national identity."