Iran Brazil highlight preventing ITU from being politicized
Iran, Brazil highlight preventing ITU from being politicized
TEHRAN – Information and Communication Technology Minister Sattar Hashemi and his Brazilian counterpart, Frederico de Siqueira Filho, have said the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) should not be affected by political approaches.
In an online meeting on Friday, Hashemi referred to the US-Israeli attacks against the country’s civilian and communication infrastructures, saying that such actions are in contrast to the principles of international law, which need to be condemned in specialized forums.
The US-Israeli aggression has led to the martyrdom of many Iranian officials and civilians, Hashemi said, adding that a strike on Shajareh Tayyebeh school in Minab resulted in the martyrdom of over 160 students and teachers. Their assaults have significantly damaged the country’s communication infrastructure, he noted.
Highlighting the role of international organizations in preserving the rights of countries, Hashemi said the ITU needs to act within the framework of its technical and specialized missions and refrain from being affected by political approaches.
For his part, Filho expressed regret over recent assaults on Iran, noting that Brazil supports peace and the expansion of international cooperation.
He also called for the discussion of specialized issues within the technical framework of the ITU, away from political considerations.
The Brazilian official noted the importance of consensus-building in international forums and emphasized the continuity of consultations to achieve a common approach. He invited Hashemi to pay a visit to Brazil to get familiar with the country’s communications capacities.
Over the past few days, Hashemi has called his Turkish, Malaysian, Cuban, and Nigerian counterparts to underscore the need for addressing recent attacks against Iran’s communication infrastructure and preventing the ITU from being politicized.
The annual meeting of the ITU Council, the governing body of the UN specialized agency of telecommunications, 28 April- 8 May 2026, Geneva, Switzerland. Discussions are focusing on global governance and specialized technical issues.
Iran urges ITU to condemn US-Israeli strikes
Hashemi has called on the ITU to condemn US-Israeli strikes on Iran’s telecommunication infrastructure, Press TV reported.
During a phone call on Wednesday with his Nigerian counterpart and the interim chairman of the organization, Olatunbosun Tijani, Hashemi condemned the US-Israeli aggression against Iran, which resulted in the martyrdom of both civilians and officials.
“The US-Israeli aggression against Iran is a flagrant violation of both international law and the UN charter,” Hashemi said.
Pointing to the destruction of Iran’s telecommunications infrastructure, which is prohibited by international law, Hashemi requested that Tijani recognize Iran’s rightful position to denounce the attacks.
Pointing to Article 51 of the UN charter, Hashemi emphasized Iran’s inherent right to self-defense and rejected a number of countries’ baseless and false claims about Iran’s attacks on civilian infrastructure.
Offering his condolences to the nation and people of Iran for the martyrdom of civilians and officials during the US-Israeli aggression, Tijani emphasized that the Geneva-based organization should avoid the politicization of its agenda.
Furthermore, during a phone conversation with his Malaysian counterpart, Ahmad Fahmi bin Mohamed Fadzil, Hashemi called on ITU to condemn US-Israeli strikes on Iran’s telecommunication infrastructure.
He emphasized that based on Article 51 of the UN Charter, Iran has a right to self-defense against the US-Israeli aggression.
“ITU must remain a technical and specialized-oriented organization, and must not turn into a scene for the political maneuvers of certain countries,” he stated.
Hashemi invited Fadzil to visit Iran and added that Iran and Malaysia must improve their relations with regards to information and telecommunications technology.
US and Israeli forces systematically targeted Iran’s telecommunications infrastructure, university system, and health facilities in a campaign of coordinated cyber and kinetic strikes aimed at crippling its scientific foundation.
The attacks – which have killed over 3,300 people since the war began on Feb. 28 – have destroyed or damaged at least 30 universities and reduced internet connectivity.
On the first day of the war, US and Israeli forces launched coordinated cyberattacks that targeted Iranian communications infrastructure, national media, and mobile applications. The cyber assault drove internet connectivity down to just 4 percent of normal levels for more than 60 hours.
At least 30 Iranian universities have been attacked since the war began. On April 6, US-Israeli strikes hit Sharif University of Technology in Tehran, one of Iran’s leading scientific universities. On April 4, the Laser and Plasma Research Institute of Shahid Beheshti University in northern Tehran was bombed.
The Pasteur Institute of Iran – a century-old medical research center founded in 1920 – was bombed on April 1 and April 2, with its headquarters and 13 source laboratories levelled.
Multiple pharmaceutical facilities have also been destroyed. The Tofigh Daru Research and Engineering Company in Tehran, a leading producer of active pharmaceutical ingredients including cancer medications, anesthetics, and treatments for multiple sclerosis, was struck on March 31, with missiles completely destroying its production and research units.
According to Iran’s Food and Drug Administration, a total of 24 industrial units in the pharmaceutical and medical-equipment sector have sustained damage in Tehran, Isfahan, Hamadan, Qom, Qazvin, Ahvaz, and Bandar Abbas. At least 14 employees from the sector were killed.
Beyond universities and health facilities, Iranian officials say more than 600 schools have been demolished or damaged, with more than 1,000 students and teachers killed or wounded. At least 56 heritage sites and 55 libraries have also been damaged.
The war on Iran began on Feb. 28 with a strike on an elementary girls’ school in Minab, southern Iran. At least 170 people, most of them girls aged between seven and 12, were killed.
MT/MG
source: tehrantimes.com