Iran: a repeat of Iraq?

Unpacking the current conflict

- Yusuf Ismail

MOURNERS hold pictures of Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei at a memorial vigil, a day after his assassination in joint US and Israeli strikes, in Tehran, on Sunday.

(AFP)

explores the parallels between the current conflict in Iran and the Iraq war, highlighting the legal and ethical implications of military actions taken by the US and Israel.

the middle of negotiations. Israel said the strikes were “preventive”, meaning they were to prevent Iran from developing a capacity to be a nuclear threat similar to the lies about Iraq. But preventive war has no legal basis under international law. The UN Security Council did not authorise any military action, and the trajectory of using force for self-defence has to be pursued at all levels before any strike occurs in any capacity whatsoever.

Article 2(4) of the UN Charter prohibits the use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any state. Preemptive self-defence, is just not allowed in the given circumstances with Iran. It requires a threat to be “instant, overwhelming, and leaving no choice of means”. No such conditions existed with Iran on February 28. Israel, on the other hand, has flagrantly violated every single rule book of international law, and has attacked four countries in the Middle East in three years.