United Nations, June 14: Even as Iran was raining missiles on Israel in retaliation for the attack on its nuclear facilities and leaders, the Security Council heard International Atomic Energy Agency’s (IAEA) top official warn that attacks on nuclear installations could have “grave consequences”.

IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi said, “Any military action that jeopardises the safety and security of nuclear facilities risks grave consequences for the people of Iran, the region, and beyond.”

The IAEA General Council has declared that military attacks on nuclear facilities violate the UN Charter and international law, he said.

UN Under-Secretary-General Rosemary DiCarlo told the Council Emergency session convened at the request of Iran, “We must at all costs avoid a growing conflagration which would have enormous global consequences”.

She said that Israel attacked Iran as “significant diplomatic developments” were afoot with talks between Washington and Tehran set to resume in Oman on Sunday. Iran has pulled out of the negotiations.

DiCarlo said, “A peaceful resolution through negotiations remains the best means to ensure the peaceful nature of Iran’s nuclear programme”.

A senior US State Department official, McCoy Pitt, said the US was still willing to negotiate.

“We seek a secure peace”, he said. “As President Trump said, the violence should come to an end, and Iran should make a deal so that there is ‘no more death, no more destruction’. The United States will continue to seek a diplomatic resolution that ensures Iran will never acquire a nuclear weapon or pose a threat to stability in the Middle East”, he said.

“Iran’s leadership would be wise to negotiate at this time”, he added.

During US President Donald Trump’s first term, he pulled out of an international agreement to stop Iran’s programme to produce materials for a nuclear bomb in return for removing some international sanctions.

However, recently he tried to work out a new agreement with Tehran, and those efforts have now been blocked by Israel’s attack on Iran.

Iran’s Permanent Representative Amir Saeid Iravani, said Israel’s attack was meant “to kill diplomacy, to sabotage negotiations, and to drag the region into wider conflict”.

He also accused Washington of being complicit in the Israeli attack.

Pitt denied that the US was involved in the attack, although it had been informed of it in advance.

Israel’s Permanent Representative Danny Danon defended his country’s action, calling it “an act of national preservation”.

He displayed a picture of a countdown clock in Tehran that was timed to its plan to annihilate Israel.

Israel’s mission was to ”neutralise the (Iranian) regime’s ability to follow through on its repeated public promise to destroy the State of Israel”, he said.

Danon said the strikes in Iran were precise and targeted the nuclear facilities.

New Delhi, June 14: Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu will chair a high-level meeting on air safety at the ministry office on Saturday. The meeting comes in the wake of the tragic crash of Air India Flight AI-171 in Ahmedabad, which was en route from Ahmedabad to London’s Gatwick Airport on June 12.

The crash claimed the lives of at least 241 people. Only one individual is reported to have survived the crash.

The meeting, scheduled for 10:30 a.m., will be attended by the Civil Aviation Secretary, the Director General of the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), officials from the Airports Authority of India, and other senior officials from related departments.

The Ministry of Civil Aviation also announced the formation of a high-level multi-disciplinary committee to examine the causes behind the devastating crash of the Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner.

According to the ministry, the committee will review the circumstances leading to the accident and assess the current Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) and safety guidelines in civil aviation.

The ministry stated that the committee’s mandate will be to recommend a comprehensive framework for preventing and managing similar aviation incidents in the future.

Taking to X, the Ministry of Civil Aviation said, “The Committee will not be a substitute to other enquiries being conducted by relevant organisations but will focus on formulating SOPs for preventing and handling such occurrences in the future.”

The crash occurred just minutes after take-off from Ahmedabad airport when the aircraft lost altitude and spiralled into a medical college hostel located in a densely populated residential area. Many are feared killed and injured on the ground as the aircraft had burst into a ball of fire as it was carrying a lot of fuel for the long-haul flight.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited the crash site on Friday and met with survivors undergoing treatment at the Ahmedabad Civil Hospital.

A team of 70-80 doctors is conducting post-mortem examinations to identify the deceased.

A formal investigation is underway to determine the cause of the crash. Forensic experts are examining the wreckage, and aviation authorities have launched a comprehensive probe to ascertain the factors that led to the fatal incident.

New Delhi, June 13: Following the devastating crash of Air India Flight AI-171 in Ahmedabad, which claimed 241 lives, Congress leader Udit Raj has launched a scathing attack on the aviation safety system in India, claiming that a Director at the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) holds a fake degree and that oversight failure led to the tragedy.

Speaking to media, Udit Raj said, “DGCA director’s degree is fake. Such incidents are bound to happen when people with fake degrees are clearing safety standards. Sikkim University has stated that his degree is forged. A PIL has also been filed in the High Court. When such people sit in key positions in civil aviation, accidents are inevitable.”

The Congress leader expressed sorrow for the victims but questioned the government’s response and accountability: “This is an extremely tragic incident. My condolences are with the families of the deceased. But when the Home Minister simply calls it an ‘accident,’ it raises serious concerns. Should we now expect such accidents to become routine? There are ways to prevent them.”

He further stated that the government has failed to act despite red flags: “When the civil aviation director, responsible for safety, is sitting with a fake degree and no action is taken, it’s obvious why such tragedies occur. Even after a PIL was filed, the official was protected.”

Raj also criticised the political double standards, adding: “If the Congress were in power today, the BJP would have demanded the resignation of the Prime Minister himself. At the very least, the Civil Aviation Minister’s resignation would be called for. But we are not politicising this, we stand with the grieving families.”

The Air India Dreamliner had taken off from Ahmedabad on June 12 en route to Gatwick, London, but crashed moments later into a residential area, making it one of the worst aviation disasters in recent memory.

In addition to the 241 lives lost in the crash, many people died in the area where the ill-fated plane fell. The government has launched a probe into the tragic incident.