GENEVA 

The UN special rapporteur on the right to housing accused the US and Israel on Saturday of "destroying world peace and order" as tensions in the Middle East escalate after both countries launched strikes against Iran.

Balakrishnan Rajagopal, in a post on the US social media platform X, said, "I strongly deplore the attack on Iran by US and Israel and the cowardly complicity of States who approve this or stay silent."

He stressed that "so many innocents will die and people’s homes destroyed because of this."

"US-Israel are destroying world peace and order," he stated.

Israel and the US early Saturday launched a joint military operation against Iran, citing "threats" posed by the "Iranian regime." The strikes came after the latest round of US-Iran nuclear talks concluded Thursday in Geneva, where both sides had described the atmosphere as serious and constructive under Omani mediation.

Last June, the US struck three Iranian nuclear sites during a 12-day Israel-Iran conflict.