8 killed as Israel strikes Iran embassy annex in Damascus

Israeli airstrikes demolishes the consular annex of Iranian embassy in Damascus, killing eight people, including six Guards members, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights

Israeli airstrikes Monday demolished the consular annex of the Iranian embassy in Damascus, according to reports from Syrian and Iranian sources.

Among the victims was a high-ranked Revolutionary Guard commander.

While Iran vowed a ‘devisive response,’ Israeli officials have neglected to comment or take responsibility.

The annex building was destroyed by Israeli missiles, and eight people, including six Guard members, were killed in the strike, according to the British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

Hossein Akbari, the Iranian ambassador to Syria, gave a lesser death toll, saying that at least five people perished in the attack by F35 fighter planes, which launched six missiles at the building.

Witnesses saw the aftermath of the attack in the affluent Mazzeh neighborhood of Damascus, where the annex building fell and rescue personnel was frantically trying to find victims under the debris.

At the location, security protocols were implemented in tandem with attempts to remove debris and provide aid to individuals impacted.

The whole structure was destroyed, as reported by Syria’s military ministry, and attempts are still being made to recover the bodies and treat the wounded.

According to Iranian state TV and the Syrian Observatory, among the dead was Brigadier General Mohammad Reza Zahedi, a top leader of the Quds Force, the Revolutionary Guard Corps’ external operations branch.

The whole structure was destroyed, as reported by Syria’s military ministry, and attempts are still being made to recover the corpses and treat the wounded.

According to Iranian state TV and the Syrian Observatory, among the dead was Brigadier General Mohammad Reza Zahedi, a top leader of the Quds Force, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ external operations branch.

The attack’s symbolic importance was highlighted because the targeted annex, which was next to the Iranian embassy, was directly across from a painting of Qassem Soleimani, the late leader of Iran’s military operations in the Middle East.

This is the sixth bombing in eight days on Syria, a nation that President Bashar al-Assad supports and that is a major ally of Iran.

Iranian leaders denounced Israel’s actions in reaction to the incident, promising a firm response and advocating for global involvement.

Protesting the event as a “heinous terrorist attack,” Syrian Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad echoed Iranian Ambassador Akbari’s criticism of Israel’s disdain for international law.

Source: AFP