GENEVA

The UN human rights chief on Saturday deplored military strikes against Iran by the US and Israel, as well as retaliatory attacks by Tehran, and called for de-escalation.

"I deplore the military strikes across Iran this morning by Israel and the United States of America, and the subsequent retaliatory strikes by Iran," Volker Turk said in a statement.

"As always, in any armed conflict, it is civilians who end up paying the ultimate price," he added.

Turk urged all parties to exercise restraint and return to dialogue, saying "bombs and missiles are not the way to resolve differences but only result in death, destruction and human misery."

"To avert these terrible consequences for civilians, I call for restraint and implore all parties to see reason, to de-escalate, and for a return to the 'negotiating table' where they had been actively seeking a solution only hours earlier," he said, calling it "the only way" to durably resolve the "deep differences" between states.

Turk warned that failure to de-escalate "risks an even wider conflict" that could cause "further senseless civilian deaths and destruction on a potentially unimaginable scale, not just in Iran but across the Middle East region."

The rights chief also reminded all actors that "international law with respect to armed conflict is very clear: the protection of civilians is paramount," and called for accountability for any violations.

The attacks came as talks between Washington and Tehran over Iran's nuclear program had been ongoing under Oman's mediation. A new round of talks in Geneva ended on Thursday.

The US also struck three Iranian nuclear sites during the 12-day Israel-Iran war last June.