Iran accuses US of greenlighting deadly strike on Syrian Consulate

Iran’s Foreign Minister, Hossein Amirabdollahian, accused the United States of giving Israel the “green light” for a strike on its consulate building in Syria, resulting in the deaths of seven Iranian military officials, including two generals.

Amirabdollahian also reiterated Iran’s vows that it will respond to the attack, widely attributed to Israel, during a visit where he met his Syrian counterpart, Faisal Mekdad, who condemned both the strike and Israel’s offensive in Gaza.

 

 

Amirabdollahian also met President Bashar Assad, with whom he discussed Gaza and the wider situation in the region, a statement from Assad’s office said.

Hezbollah’s leader, Hassan Nasrallah, echoed Iran’s sentiments, pledging support for a military response to the consulate attack, resulting death of Gen. Mohammad Reza Zahedi, a senior military official in the Iranian Revolutionary Guard’s Quds Force.

The strike comes amid heightened tensions between Israel and Lebanon’s Hezbollah, both backed by Iran. Hamas, also supported by Iran, has been engaged in clashes with Israel.

Despite Israel’s regular strikes on Iranian targets, the death of Gen. Mohammad Reza Zahedi is considered a significant blow to Tehran, comparable to the killing of Quds Force chief Gen. Qassim Soleimani by a U.S. drone in 2020.

“I’d like to say with a very loud voice from here in Damascus that America has a responsibility in what happened and must be held responsible,” Iran’s foreign minister Amirabdollahian stated. 

 

 

Amirabdollahian, who earlier that day inaugurated the opening of a new consular section in a nearby building, asserted that the U.S., along with “two European countries,” failed to denounce the attack, implying tacit approval.

He said that failure to condemn the attack “indicates that Washington had given the green light to Israel to commit this crime.”

The Biden administration denied prior knowledge of the airstrike, while Israel remained silent.

However, the Pentagon attributed responsibility to Israel. 

Nasrallah emphasized Zahedi’s importance to Hezbollah and affirmed unwavering support for Iran.

 

 

Nasrallah, like Syria, and other key allies of Tehran, have said they remain committed to backing Iran.

“It’s a natural right for Iran. It’s natural for the Islamic Republic to conduct this response (to the consulate attack),” Nasrallah said.

Source: Newsroom