FLASH
Shkruar nga Zamir Ahmed Awan
The Syrian Ministry of Defense has confirmed that an Israeli missile attack hit the Iranian consulate building in the western Mezzeh region on the outskirts of Damascus. The rockets came from the direction of the Golan Heights and the strike occurred around 17:00 local time.
Although Syrian air defense systems neutralized some missiles, others managed to penetrate causing the complete destruction of the building and dozens of casualties. Iran's ambassador to Syria, Hossein Akbari, denounced the attack, citing casualties among embassy staff and military attachés.
He confirmed 5-7 victims, including diplomats. Later, Iran's Revolutionary Guard announced the death of 7 senior military personnel, including Brigadier General Mohammad Reza Zahedi and General Mohammad Hadi Haji-Rahimi. Syrian Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad condemned the attack as a "terrible terrorist attack".
In a conversation with Mekdad, Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian criticized the attack as a violation of international obligations, attributing responsibility to the Zionist regime. The incident highlights heightened tensions in the region and the enduring complexity of the Syrian conflict intertwined with broader geopolitical rivalries.
Iran has vowed to retaliate. Leaders in Tehran described the targeting of a diplomatic mission as an unprecedented act and promised a tough response. "Benjamin Netanyahu has completely lost his mental balance due to successive failures in Gaza and his failure to achieve his Zionist goals," the Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
Iran's ambassador to Syria, Hossein Akbari, said Iran's response to the attack would be "of the same magnitude and severity". He said the consulate in the Syrian capital had been hit by six missiles fired by F-35 jets. Bodies were still being identified in the wreckage, he said.
Akbari, who worked at the nearby embassy, vowed that Iran would continue to support Palestinians in Gaza and was not afraid of the Israeli government. But the attack represents a test for Iran, which will already feel the need to respond as it remains keen to avoid being dragged into an open, all-out conflict with Israel.
Israel has carried out back-to-back attacks on Iranian and Syrian military leaders in Lebanon and Syria since before the latest conflict in Gaza. But this was one of the bravest.
Syrian Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad visited the site of the attack and vowed that Israeli forces will not be able to damage relations between Iran and Syria. The attack follows a marked increase in violence between Israel and Hezbollah on the Israeli-Lebanon border since the October 7 attack by Hamas, as well as the resumption of violent attacks by Iranian-backed militias on US and Israeli positions in Iraq.
Last Friday, Israeli strikes in Syria killed 53 people, including 38 soldiers and 7 members of Hezbollah, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported. It was the highest number of Syrian army casualties from Israeli strikes since the Israel-Hamas war began in October 2023. Some saw the attack as a response to a drone, apparently launched by Iraq, that hit a building at a naval base in Israel's southernmost city of Eilat in the early hours of Monday. But Zahedi was on the list to be eliminated for some time.
As a rule, Israel does not comment on its attacks, but the Iranian media made no effort to hide the loss of such a high-ranking figure. Last year, Israel killed Sayed Reza Musawi, the Revolutionary Guard's head of logistics in the Levant. The US said it was aware of reports of attacks on the Iranian diplomatic mission but had no comment. Meanwhile, the UN has appeared very concerned by the reports, while it will take a position in the following days.
The long-term significance of this incident is expected to be seen in the coming days. Tehran is likely to closely monitor the US response, to understand whether President Joe Biden pre-approved the attack or was notified only when it began.
The United States has classified the Al-Quds unit as a terrorist force, but American diplomats have worked hard to avoid escalating the Gaza war into a wider conflict directly between Iran and Israel.
It seems that Israel has sinister plans to expand the conflict in the Middle East, trying to include Lebanon, Syria, Iran and several other countries in the region. It is also clear that the US is supporting Israel in implementing these malicious plans.
The recent supply of lethal weapons to Israel is unnecessary, and Washington's irrational and blind support for it can lead to such disasters. Israeli military power is posing a global threat to peace and stability. Israel has even become so strong that it refuses to implement the decisions of the UN Security Council and the International Court of Justice.
The scenario before us is frightening, as Israel is leading us towards World War III. The large availability of lethal weapons and those of mass destruction could exterminate a good part of the world's population and the scale of the tragedy can be imagined. That all peace-loving countries, organizations and individuals should react to Israeli aggressions and limit such ambitions./ Adapted "Pamphlet" from "Modern Diplomacy"
Note: Zamir Ahmed Awan, former career diplomat, Fellow of the Center for China and Globalization at the National University of Science and Technology (NUST), Islamabad, Pakistan.
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