Tension escalates in Middle-East as top commanders of Iran’s Quds Force killed in Israeli airstrike on Syria’s Damascus

Iran has vowed a robust response to the attack

April 2, 2024

Attack on Iran consulate in Syria escalates conflict in Middle East

Tensions have escalated in the Middle East region as an Israeli air strike on Syria‘s Damascus killed six people including a top commander of the Quds Force of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC).

Iran has vowed a robust response to the attack. Iran claimed that the strike was carried out by Israel using F-35 warplanes.

As per reports, the air strike directly targeted Iran’s consulate building in Damascus at a time when Zahedi was meeting with leaders of Palestinian Islamic Jihad.

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) confirmed the tragic loss of seven of its officials, including senior commanders Mohammed Reza Zahedi and Mohammad Hadi Haji Rahimi.

Hossein Akbari, the Iranian ambassador in Damascus, condemned the assault as a violation of international laws and vowed that Iran would respond decisively. Haji Rahimi, described as a coordinator for the Quds Force, was identified as the second commander killed in the attack. Other officials named in the statement include Hossein Aman Elahi, Mehdi Jalalati, Mohsen Sedaghat, Ali Aghababaee, and Ali Salehi Roozbahani.

However, Israel has yet to take responsibility for the attack.

According to The Jerusalem Post, Zahedi was responsible for smuggling ammunition and precision weapons into Lebanon. In the past, he had also commanded the IRGC’s Air Force and Imam Hussein Division. While Iran claimed that the building was its embassy with the country’s flag raised on top of it, Israel’s military spokesperson Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari disputed Iran’s characterization of the targeted building, claiming it was not a consulate or embassy but rather a military structure of the Quds forces disguised as a civilian facility in Damascus.

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