The United Nations has called on all concerned to exercise utmost restraint and warned to avoid further escalation over the attack on diplomatic premises of the Islamic Republic of Iran in Damascus on 1 April, as well as the reported casualties.
The UN Secretary-General, Antonio Guterres who made the call in a statement released by his Spokesperson, Stephanie Dujarric on Tuesday while strongly condemned the attack that claimed lives and left many injured.
He cautioned that any miscalculation could lead to broader conflict in an already volatile region, with devastating consequences for civilians who already seeing unprecedented suffering in Syria, Lebanon, the Occupied Palestinian Territory, and the broader Middle East.
UN Chief reaffirmed that the principle of the inviolability of diplomatic and consular premises and personnel must be respected in all cases in accordance with international law.
While reminded all parties to respect all their obligations under international law, including international humanitarian law, as applicable, he also repeated his calls on all concerned to avoid attacks that could harm civilians and damage civilian infrastructure.
It was reported that suspected Israeli warplanes bombed Iran’s embassy in Syria on Monday in an escalation of Israel’s war against Iran’s regional proxies, flattening a building in a strike Tehran said killed a top Revolutionary Guards commander and several diplomats.
It added that the Israeli has long targeted Iranian military installations and those of its proxies in Syria, and has ramped up those strikes in parallel with its campaign against Iran-backed Palestinian group Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
Monday’s attack was the first time the vast embassy compound itself had been hit, an Israeli military spokesperson said the Israel typically does not comment about attacks by its forces on Syria. Asked about the strike, “We do not comment on reports in the foreign media”, he said.
The report further said that the Iranian Ambassador to Syria, Hossein Akbari, who was not injured, said at least five people had been killed in the attack and that Tehran’s response would be “harsh”.
Also, Iranian state media said one of those killed was Mohammad Reza Zahedi, a senior commander in Iran’s Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC), and that Tehran believed he was the target of the attack.
