Islamic Republic Ambassador in Damascus: Israel Attacked Consulate with F-35 and Six Missiles

Hosseini Akbari, the Islamic Republic of Iran's ambassador to Syria, claimed that Israel attacked the Iranian consulate located next to the embassy in Damascus using an F-35 fighter jet and six missiles. He stated that he was in his office at the time of the attack. The ambassador acknowledged that several Iranian 'military advisors' were killed in this attack attributed to Israel. In the Islamic Republic's official terminology, commanders and members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) in Syria and other regional countries are referred to as 'military advisors.' In an interview with Iranian state television, Akbari held Israel responsible for the attack and claimed that the Islamic Republic has responded to 'all' previous Israeli attacks, although he did not specify any particular instances to support this claim. He also stated that Israel had not previously attacked Iranian diplomatic sites. The Islamic Republic has a long history of assaults on embassies and diplomatic sites in Tehran and other Iranian cities. Akbari further mentioned that five to seven people were killed in this attack, and their names would be announced later. The Twitter account of the newspaper Shargh, citing a Telegram channel close to the IRGC, reported that three IRGC commanders were killed in the attack on Monday, April 1, including Brigadier General Mohammad Reza Zahidi, commander of the IRGC Quds Force in Syria and Lebanon, Brigadier General Hossein Aminollah, chief of staff of the IRGC Quds Force, and Major General Haj Rahimi, a close friend and deputy of Zahidi, who was also part of the IRGC Quds Force in Syria and Lebanon. According to the Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA), Faisal Mikdad, the Syrian foreign minister, visited the Iranian embassy in Damascus and condemned the attack during a phone conversation with his Iranian counterpart, Hossein Amir-Abdollahian. The Syrian foreign minister also expressed condolences to Hossein Akbari, the Islamic Republic's ambassador in Syria. Nasser Kan'ani, the spokesman for the Islamic Republic's foreign ministry, also attributed the attack to Israel, stating that Tehran reserves its right for 'retaliatory actions' and will decide on the 'type of response and punishment for the aggressor,' but is currently 'reviewing' the dimensions of the attack. In recent years, a significant number of IRGC commanders have been killed in various attacks attributed to Israel both inside and outside Iran. The complete destruction of the Islamic Republic's embassy building in Damascus occurred after the attack, with videos showing the extent of the damage. Images of the complete destruction of the Iranian consulate in Damascus due to the attack attributed to Israel were also released. On Monday, April 1, 1403, a senior IRGC officer among the casualties of the 'Israeli' attack was Mohammad Reza Zahidi, 'commander of the IRGC in Syria and Lebanon.' The White House stated that Biden is aware of reports regarding the Israeli attack on the Iranian consulate in Damascus.