Italian Minister of Foreign Affairs Antonio Tajani has called on Iran to show restraint over the expected response to a terrorist attack by Israel on Iranian diplomatic premises in the Syrian capital of Damascus earlier this month.
In a phone conversation on Friday, Tajani appealed to Iran’s Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian “for moderation”.
“We cannot risk escalation at such an extremely volatile stage. All regional actors must show responsibility,” the top Italian diplomat said in a statement.
Iran’s Foreign Ministry also in a statement quoted Tajani as saying that Italy along with the European Union condemned Israel’s attack on Iran’s diplomatic site in Damascus.
No attack should be carried out against diplomatic sites, he acknowledged.
The top Italian diplomat stressed the importance of ensuring maritime security in the Red Sea and called for the continuation of Iran’s positive role in resolving tensions and promoting endurable peace in the region.
Tajani’s appeal came amid fears that Tehran will retaliate after the Israeli missile attack on the consular section of the Iranian embassy in Damascus on April 1 killed a senior commander of Iran’s Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) Quds Force, Brigadier General Mohammad Reza Zahedi, and his deputy General Mohammad Hadi Haji Rahimi along with five others.
During a speech in Tehran on Wednesday after leading the Eid al-Fitr prayers, Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei said the Israeli regime “must be punished and will be punished” for its deadly strike on the Iranian diplomatic premises.
Ayatollah Khamenei added, “The evil Zionist regime committed another mistake … and that was the attack on the Iranian consulate in Syria. The consulate and diplomatic missions in any country are considered to be the territory of that country. When they attack our consulate, it means they have attacked our soil.”
Tehran urges Rome to end Israeli genocide
For his part, Amir-Abdollahian said as the president of the G7, or Group of Seven, Italy is expected to make efforts to end Israel’s genocide and war crimes in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank in order to achieve comprehensive security in the region.
He added that Iran has always played a positive role regarding the developments in the region and incurred significant costs for regional stability and security.
The growing calls for an immediate ceasefire in the Gaza Strip come as more than six months of brutal Israeli aggression has killed at least 33,634 Palestinians, mostly women and children, and injured 76,214 others.
On Friday, Gaza’s health ministry said that 89 people have been killed in Israeli attacks on Gaza in the past 24 hours. An additional 120 have been wounded, totaling 76,214 since the Israeli war began in early October.
A UNICEF vehicle was attacked while en route to provide aid in Northern Gaza, an area already devastated by child malnutrition. A spokesperson from the agency explains how the event unfolded. pic.twitter.com/bAnnYBWeWt
— Palestine Highlights (@PalHighlight) April 12, 2024
Israel launched the onslaught on October 7 after the Hamas resistance group carried out Operation Al-Aqsas Storm against the usurping entity in retaliation for its intensified atrocities against the Palestinian people.
Elsewhere in his remarks, Amir-Abdollahian expressed Tehran’s readiness to improve relations with Rome given the historical ties between the two sides.
