U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz speaks during a United Nations Security Council meeting, after the U.S. and Israel launched strikes on Iran, at U.N. headquarters in New York City, U.S. February 28, 2026. REUTERS/Heather Khalifa
The U.S. and Iranian Ambassadors to the United Nations squared off during an emergency meeting on Saturday.
The U.N Security Council held an emergency meeting to discuss the U.S. and Israel's coordinated attackagainst Iran. Reports indicate Israel bombed multiple sites where Iran's political and military leadership were located, which killed Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the dictator who had ruled the country since 1989. The U.S struck multiple Iranian ballistic and nuclear missile sites, according to reports.
During the meeting, the U.S. Ambassador, Mike Waltz, sharply criticized Iran for its history of killing its citizens and for chanting "death to America at every opening of its Parliament." The Iranian Ambassador, Amir-Saeid Iravani, and other representatives from Middle Eastern countries accused the U.S. of violating international law by carrying out the strikes.
At the end of the testy exchange, Iravani lobbed a threat at Waltz.
"I would advise the US representative to be polite! It would be better for yourself and the country you represent," Iravani said, throwing his headset onto the table.
Waltz offered a terse reply.
"I am not going to dignify this with another response, especially as this representative represents a regime that has killed tens of thousands of its own people and imprisoned many more simply for wanting freedom from your tyranny," Waltz said.