'The spider at the center of this web of violence': Danon criticizes Iran over Hezbollah escalation

Iran is fighting a war against humanity and is holding the Lebanese hostage through its proxy group Hezbollah, Israel’s Ambassador to the United Nations Danny Danon told the UN Security Council as he defended Israel’s military actions in Lebanon.

“The Islamic Regime of Iran is the driving force behind the rockets that have been launched at our communities for almost a year, “ Danon said.

“This is not just a war against Israel. This is a war on humanity, waged by Iran’s proxies. They hold the people of Lebanon hostage, using their homes as shields for their rockets, pushing the entire region to the brink of destruction,” he stated.

Danon spoke as the UNSC met to discuss the escalation in the last week of the year-long constrained cross-border IDF-Hezbollah war, which the international community fears is about to escalate into a third Israeli-Lebanon war.He called on the UNSC to insist that Hezbollah must adhere to Resolution 1701, which mandates that no armed non-state actors can operate along Israel’s southern border.

Danon placed the conflict within the larger regional one between Israel and Iran, noting that in the last year, Israel has been fighting the Islamic Republic’s proxies on many fronts, including Hamas in Gaza and the Houthis in Yemen.

Iran, Danon said, is “the driving force behind Hezbollah’s aggression and the driving force behind the instability sweeping our region."

Iran and its proxies 

“As the head of the terrorist snake, Iran has spread its venom against innocent Israeli civilians – from the Houthis in Yemen attempting to strangle global trade to Hezbollah’s rocket barrages; from Hamas and [the] Palestinian Islamic Jihad's practice of rape and kidnapping to the Shia militias in Syria and Iraq targeting Western personnel, the Ayatollah stands behind it all,” Danon stated.

“Every missile fired by Hezbollah, every drone launched by Iranian proxies, every act of terror on foreign soil, traces back to one source: the Islamic regime of Iran. It is the spider at the center of this web of violence, and until that web is dismantled, there can be no peace in the region,” he stated.

“Israel does not seek a full-scale war. We have made our desire for peace clear to all those who are not blinded by hatred and political agendas. However, Israel is under attack,” Danon said.