Iranian Foreign Minister: Israel's Frequent Assassinations, the International Community Should Not Have "Double Standards"

Xinhua News Agency, Tehran, March 18 (Reporter Chen Xiao, Shadati) - Iranian Foreign Minister Zarif stated in a social media post on the evening of the 18th that Israel shows no regard for the consequences of normalizing its "outrageous" assassination tactics, and the international community should not hold double standards or ignore Israel's "reckless behavior."

The day before, Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu posted a video on social media showing him talking with U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee, during which he displayed a card related to the assassination of Iranian officials, claiming that two names had been "erased" from it that day, implying that Israel had assassinated Secretary of the Supreme National Security Council Larijani and the commander of the militia group "Mobilization of the Poor" Soleimani.

Zarif wrote that if the Iranian president were to show a "kill list" to a foreign ambassador, including the U.S. president, congressional leaders, and senior generals, and then announced plans to eliminate them one by one, the United Nations Security Council would convene an emergency meeting, the media would go into a frenzy, and "sanctions, threats, and even war would follow—all packaged in the name of 'international law' and maintaining 'global order'."

Zarif pointed out that, however, when it comes to Israel, the usual rules of the game seem to no longer apply. Those so-called "guardians of law and order" remain silent, vague, and even provide weapons and shelter to Israel. This reflects a deliberate moral collapse, where rules only apply to adversaries, while exemptions belong solely to allies.

He also stated that Israel is dragging its American partners deeper into a moral and political abyss.

On February 28, the U.S. and Israel launched a large-scale military operation against Iran, resulting in the deaths of then-Iranian Supreme Leader Khamenei and several senior military and political officials in the airstrikes. Iran retaliated against targets such as Israel and U.S. military bases in the Middle East. Israeli Defense Minister Katz stated on the 18th that he and Netanyahu jointly decided to authorize the Israeli military to strike "any Iranian senior official" without needing approval, declaring that "all Iranians are targets."