Iran has filed a grievance against Israel with the U.N. Security Council over Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's speech at the Munich Security Conference last week, saying it constitutes a direct threat to the Islamic republic.
In his speech to the prestigious symposium, Netanyahu criticized Iran for its interference in Middle East affairs.
The speech came on the heels of an Iranian drone incursion into Israeli airspace. Israeli fighter jets struck Iranian assets in Syria in retaliation, and an Israeli F-16 was downed by Syrian anti-aircraft fire. Although both sides refrained from any subsequent escalation, the incident remains the most serious confrontation to date between Israel and the Iranian-backed forces in Syria.
Holding up a fragment of a downed drone during his speech, Netanyahu warned that "Israel will not allow Iran's regime to put a noose of terror around our neck. We will act if necessary, not just against Iran's proxies that are attacking us but against Iran itself."
In his letter to the 15-member council, Iranian Ambassador to the U.N. Gholamali Khoshroo wrote, "Netanyahu has threatened to attack Iran. We demand you confront Israel over the expansion and destruction activities of the Israeli regime."
Israel had filed a complaint against Iran with the Security Council over the drone's incursion.
Israeli Ambassador Danny Danon's letter urged the council to censure Iran over its breach of Israeli airspace, saying the U.N. "must condemn this dangerous move and put an end to Iran's provocations once and for all."
Commenting on the Iranian grievance Sunday, Danon said, "The Iranian lies will not succeed in obscuring the clear facts: Iran is the biggest state sponsor of terrorism in the world. The U.N. Security Council cannot stand idly by as Iran provokes a dangerous escalation and destabilizes the region."
