Iran's Pezeshkian Demands Accountability and Compensation at COP31: US-Israeli Strikes on Fuel Facilities Released About 1.5 Million Tonnes of Carbon Dioxide
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian told the leaders' summit of the 31st United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP31) in Antalya, Türkiye, on November 11 that US and Israeli attacks on Iran had caused serious environmental damage and that those responsible must be held to account. Citing assessments, he said strikes on fuel facilities in Asaluyeh in southern Iran had released about 500,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide, while strikes on fuel storage facilities around Tehran had produced about another one million tonnes, some 1.5 million tonnes in total.
Pezeshkian said wars waged against land, water, air and natural resources leave environmental consequences that persist for generations, calling the environment "a silent victim of wars." He added that protected areas and environmental ranger stations inside Iran had also been damaged in the attacks, describing them as shared natural assets belonging to present and future generations.
He called for stronger international mechanisms to document environmental destruction caused by military operations, prevent similar incidents and hold those responsible accountable, including through compensation. Military operations that release large quantities of pollutants contradict global efforts to cut greenhouse gas emissions, he said.
Pezeshkian added that peace and environmental protection are mutually dependent, and that the Earth belongs neither to one nation nor to one generation but is a trust to be handed safely to those who come next. He also said clean electricity generation in Iran had prevented about 2.5 million tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions this year.
COP31 runs in Antalya from November 9 to 20, and its leaders' summit opened on November 11 with representatives of nearly 200 countries in attendance.
Related: COP31 Leaders' Summit Opens in Antalya
(Source: Anadolu Agency)
Source: Anadolu Agency
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：伊朗总统佩泽希齐扬。照片：khamenei.ir，CC BY 4.0，经 Wikimedia Commons。 / Photo: Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian. Photo by khamenei.ir, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
