Iran says four of its diplomats were killed in weekend strike on Beirut hotel

Iran accused Israel on Tuesday of killing four of its diplomats in a weekend strike on a seafront Beirut hotel in what it called a "terrorist attack".

Tehran's permanent mission to the United Nations said in a letter to the UN secretary-general that the strike early Sunday on the Ramada Hotel "resulted in the assassination and martyrdom" of four diplomats.

The Israeli military had previously claimed responsibility for the attack.


It said it had "conducted a precise strike targeting key commanders" in the Iranian Revolutionary Guards' Quds Force, its foreign operations arm.

The Iranian ambassador to the United Nations later Tuesday accused the Security Council of ignoring what he called a "grave terrorist attack" and a "war crime".

"The Council is turning a blind eye to this grave violation despite its primary responsibility under the UN Charter to maintain international peace and security," Amir Saeid Iravani told reporters in New York.