Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar on Monday sent a letter to the President of the UN Security Council, calling on the Council to take immediate action regarding the activity of the pro-Iranian militias in Iraq, whose territory is being used to attack Israel.
The militias have claimed a number of UAV attacks on targets in Israel in recent months.
“I am writing to express our grave concern over the significant increase in the frequency and the intensity of attacks on Israel conducted by the Iranian-backed militias in Iraq since September 2024,” Sa’ar wrote in his letter.
“These attacks are a blatant violation of the UN Charter and International Law and have potential to further drag the region into a very dangerous escalation while posing a significant threat to international peace and security,” he added.
“Since the heinous terrorist attack by Hamas on Israel, October 7, 2023, the Iranian- backed militias in Iraq such as Kata’ib Hezbollah, Asa’ib Ahl al-Haq, Al Nujaba, Kata’ib Sayyid al-Shuhada, Ansar Allah al-Awfiya the Badr Brigade and others, have launched towards Israel hundreds of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV’s) of the Shahed, Ziad, Arpad types as well as several dozen cruise missiles (Raad 351),” stated Sa’ar.
He noted, “Attacks by the Iranian-backed militias in Iraq are aimed deliberately to strike national infrastructure, civilian areas as well as military bases. While some of the UAVs and missiles were intercepted, others made impact in Israeli territory. For example, on October 3rd, two explosive-laden UAVs were launched from Iraq, one of which was intercepted by air defenses and the second impacted an army base in the north of Israel, resulting in the death of two soldiers while wounding 24 others.”
Sa’ar also wrote that the militias in question “are subsidiaries of the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) which is an Iraqi state-sponsored paramilitary network, that operates under the directives of Iran. The Government of Iraq is responsible under international law to prevent the use of its territory as a base for attacks against other nations. Israel calls on the Iraqi Government to fulfill this obligation and to take immediate action to halt and prevent these attacks.”
“Against this backdrop I wish to recall once again that Israel has the inherent right to self-defense, as enshrined in article 51 of the UN charter, and to take all necessary measures to protect itself and its citizens against the ongoing acts of hostilities by Iranian-backed militias in Iraq,” he noted.
“Given the gravity of the situation I urge the Security Council to take immediate action to address this situation and ensure that the Government of Iraq fulfills its obligations to the UN Charter and International Law, including UNSCR 1546 which calls for preventing the transit to and from Iraq of terrorists, as well as arms for terrorists and financing that would support terrorists,” Sa’ar wrote.