{"id":225351,"date":"2026-09-24T12:54:15","date_gmt":"2026-09-24T12:54:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/watch-iranian-president-pezeshkian-addresses-2026-un-general-assembly-pbs\/"},"modified":"2026-09-24T12:54:15","modified_gmt":"2026-09-24T12:54:15","slug":"watch-iranian-president-pezeshkian-addresses-2026-un-general-assembly-pbs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/watch-iranian-president-pezeshkian-addresses-2026-un-general-assembly-pbs\/","title":{"rendered":"WATCH: Iranian President Pezeshkian addresses 2026 UN General Assembly – PBS"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Farnoush Amiri, Associated Press<\/span> <\/a> Farnoush Amiri, Associated Press <\/a>
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UNITED NATIONS (AP) \u2014 Iran’s president said Wednesday that his people have been “victims of terrorism” by the United States, delivering a rare wartime speech at U.N. General Assembly a day after President Donald Trump said he could “annihilate” the Islamic republic.
Watch in our video player above.<\/strong>
In a defiant speech, President Masoud Pezeshkian held up large photos of the late Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and the more than 150 school Iranian children killed on the first days of the war.
WATCH LIVE:<\/strong> Day 2 of the 2026 United Nations General Assembly<\/a>
“We have only defended ourselves. We are not terrorists,” Pezeshkian said at the General Assembly. “Our innocent people have been the targets of cowardly attacks and aggressions imposed upon our country. And we defended ourselves with utmost strength. America and Israel attacked us.”
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He added of the United States: “Yes they did hit us, but we did not bend the knee.” Toward the end of his speech, Pezeshkian called out Trump by name.
“It must be understood by Mr. Trump and those who seek to bully us that we are ready for dialogue and diplomacy and negotiations without accepting the language of force,” he said.
He also said one thing that was measurably false: “We did not hit civilian populations.” Mariners and migrant workers in the region have been among the civilians killed in Iran’s attacks since the war began.
Arriving in New York under heavy security and scrutiny, Pezeshkian \u2014 who, within Iran’s political landscape, is considered a moderate politician \u2014 addressed world leaders a day after Trump used the same stage to suggest he may “annihilate” the Islamic Republic if a deal isn’t reached soon to end the nearly seven-month war.