05. March 2026

Prof. Dr. Dr. h.c. Matthias Herdegen in an interview with ZEIT Prof. Dr. Dr. h.c. Matthias Herdegen in an interview with ZEIT

Prof. Dr. Dr. h.c. Matthias Herdegen was interviewed by ZEIT on March 5. In the interview, he discussed his perspective on international law regarding the American-Israeli attack on Iran. According to him, the attack is covered by international law.

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As a rule, the UN Security Council is responsible for preventing violent escalations. However, it is unable to act, particularly when the interests of its members clash, as in the case of the war in Ukraine or, most recently, in Iran.

However, it is important to recognize that international law grants every state the right to self-defense. This applies to direct attacks, but also to imminent threats to the security of a state.
It is not clear where the classification of an imminent threat begins. Prof. Dr. Dr. h.c. Herdegen believes that this threat already exists: Iran is working to acquire its own nuclear weapons and the medium-range missiles needed to deliver them. At the same time, it regularly emphasizes the revocation of the Israeli state's right to exist and threatens its destruction. From Prof. Dr. Dr. h.c. Herdegen's point of view, all these arguments point to a sufficiently acute threat to justify a preemptive strike.
From Israel's point of view, it is hardly possible to wait any longer. If Iran were to acquire nuclear weapons and the corresponding delivery systems, it would be almost impossible to remove them effectively and thus prevent them from posing a threat to Israel.

You can read the entire interview with Prof. Dr. Dr. h.c. Matthias Herdegen here.

Prof. Dr. Dr. h.c. Matthias Herdegen is Director of the Institute for Public Law and Director of the Institute for International Law at the University of Bonn, a member of the Center for European Economic Law, and a member of the Center Council of the Center for Advanced Security, Strategic and Integration Studies (CASSIS) at the University of Bonn.

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