Speaking to delegates at the COP31 UN Climate Change Conference in Turkey, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian condemned joint military strikes by the United States and Israel. He stated that the attacks caused severe ecological destruction and pumped massive volumes of greenhouse gases and pollutants into the atmosphere. Pezeshkian specifically highlighted an 8 March attack on the Asaluyeh gas field in southern Iran, which he reported released roughly 500,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide. To address these consequences, he called for international mechanisms to hold both nations formally accountable.
Key points
Tehran is calling for international accountability mechanisms to address cross-border eco…: Tehran is calling for international accountability mechanisms to address cross-border ecological destruction caused by military conflict.
The military strikes specifically targeted critical Iranian energy infrastructure, trigge…: The military strikes specifically targeted critical Iranian energy infrastructure, triggering widespread environmental harm and pollution.
Massive greenhouse gas releases from war damage were brought before global leaders at the…: Massive greenhouse gas releases from war damage were brought before global leaders at the COP31 climate conference in Turkey.
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Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian accused the US and Israel of inflicting severe environmental damage during attacks on the country in his speech at the UN Climate Change Conference in Turkey on Wednesday, calling for mechanisms to hold them accountable.
"The recent criminal and illegal aggression against Iran by America and the Zionist regime... has inflicted severe damage on the environment, releasing massive quantities of pollutants and greenhouse gases into the atmosphere," Pezeshkian said.
He told COP31 that US-Israeli attacks released 1.5 million tonnes of CO2 into the atmosphere and caused extensive damage to the environment.
Attacks on the Asaluyeh gas field in Iran's south on 8 March alone "resulted in the emission of approximately 500,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide", he added, while "the deliberate strike on fuel depots near Tehran led to the release of another one million tonnes".
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