Iran FM hails Jakarta's condemnation of consulate attack

In a telephone conversation, Hossein Amir-Abdollahian and Retno Marsudi discussed the latest developments in the region and the process of bilateral relations between Tehran and Jakarta.

Amir-Abdollahian hailed Indonesia’s efforts to help Palestine, as well as the country’s no vote in the Human Rights Council in favor of Iran.

Iranian top diplomat invited the foreign minister of Indonesia to visit Tehran.

He appreciated Jakarta’s position in condemning the aggression of the Zionist regime on the Iranian consulate in Damascus, informing his counterpart about the latest developments in the region and especially the legitimate defense of Iran’s armed forces in Saturday retaliatory attack against the Zionist regime.

Saying that Iran has acted against the aggression of the Zionist regime within the framework of international laws, he pointed out that the main source of tension and war in the region is the Israeli regime.

He emphasized that Iran does not seek to escalate tension in the region, but instead, Iran will always remain an important part of stability and security in the region.

Indonesia’s Foreign Minister for her part called for continued consultation, cooperation and interaction with Iran regarding the Palestinian issue, stating that Indonesia emphasizes that the incidents and events that are happening in Gaza should not be forgotten and the Palestinian cause should be kept alive.

The two sides also discussed some other bilateral issues of mutual interest.

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Lebanese media report of Israeli drone strike on vehicle

Related video footage shows that a vehicle is burning on the side of the road in Ain Baal district in south Lebanon. 

The drone attack could have been carried out by the Israeli military as it came after rocket warning sirens were sounded in northern occupied lands close to the Lebanon border.

According to Times of Israel, the sirens could be heard in multiple locations including Idmit, Hanita and Shlomi.

Meanwhile, the Israeli regime’s Channel 12 reported that the regime’s army attacked a car in Lebanon after a drone attack on the town of Beit Hillel.

MNA

Putin discusses Israel tensions with Iran's Raeisi: Kremlin

In a telephone conversation, Putin and Raeisi discussed the aftermath of Israel’s strike on the Iranian consulate in Damascus and Tehran’s retaliatory measures, the Kremlin said.

Putin expressed hope that all sides would show reasonable restraint and prevent a new round of confrontation.

The Iranian president noted that Iran’s actions were forced and limited in nature, and stressed its disinterest in further escalation.

MNA/PR

Raeisi describes Lebanon as main pillar of Resistance

“Al-Aqsa Storm operation was a strategic failure for the Zionist regime, and more than the military failure, it has also been a security defeate for the regime, which has resulted in changing the equations in the region in favor of the Palestinian cause,” President Raeisi said in a meeting with Sheikh Ali Al-Khatib, Vice President of the Supreme Islamic Assembly of Shiites of Lebanon.

“Unity has been created today among the Islamic Ummah and beyond that in the public opinion of the world. Also, the resentment towards the Zionist regime that has spread to America, the West and in entire world is unprecedented like never before,” Raeisi also said.

He went on to stress that if the Zionist Israeli regime makes the slightest mistake, “the Zionists and their backers will realize the meaning of Iran’s real and large-scale response.”

In the meeting, Sheikh Al-Khatib, for his part, said that, “Despite all efforts on the part of the enemies, the people of Lebanon are friendly and supportive of the resistance.”

He thanked and praised Iran for its strong response to the Zionist regime. 

“No other country has been able to stand so powerfully against a regime that has the support of all world powers,” the senior Lebanese cleric said.

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Jordan cooperation with Israel 'strategic mistake'

In an interview with Mehr News Agency on Tuesday, the Deputy Chairman of the Iranian Parliament National Security Commission spoke about the destructive role of the Jordanian during Iran’s retaliatory attack on Israel who opened their airspace for the Zionists to confront Iranian drones and missiles.

“It is expected that the Muslim countries of the region would support the oppressed people of Palestine and Gaza,” Heidari said, adding that although the Jordanian people fully support Palestine, the Jordanian government is acting differently.

“Jordan could at least remain silent or even support Iran’s legitimate defense against the Zionist regime, but surprisingly and regrettably, it cooperated with the Zionist regime,” he went on to say, considering the Jordanian move as influenced by the US and Israel.

He further stressed that although Jordan’s action against Iran was not effective, the action itself was very important. “Jordan made a strategic mistake by cooperating with the Zionist regime.”

Elsewhere in his remarks, Shahriari referred to the condemnation of Jordan’s move by different nations, including the Jordanian people.

“Jordan did this to please the Zionist regime and the US; In fact, it can be said that the Jordanian government cooperated with the Zionist regime mostly to protect itself and not for the sake of its people,” he continued.

Referring to Iran’s efforts against the Israeli regime, the senior Iranian lawmaker called on all the Muslim countries to fulfill their duty to support Palestine.

“It is expected that the Islamic countries would stand with the Palestinian people because the Zionist regime has committed many crimes and murders in Gaza in recent months, and if Israel is arrogant and allows itself to continue its operations against Gaza, it is because not all the Islamic countries have stood against it.”

Islamic countries must stand against the Israeli regime in practice, he concluded.

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Explosion reported in Tiberias in occupied Palestine

According to Lebanese al-Mayadeen TV network, the local media in occupied territories controlled by the Zionist regime reported that an explosion was heard in Tiberias.

Sources related to the Zionist regime announced “A fire was reported as a result of a rocket hitting the Yeftiel district in Tiberias in the north of occupied Palestine.”

Meanwhile, the sources also stated that the sirens did not go off after the fire.

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Oman flash floods kill nearly 20, including children


Rescue teams were called on to carry out multiple high water rescues as flash floods triggered by heavy rain lead to the loss of at least 18 people in Oman.

More than a dozen people have been killed, many of them schoolchildren, in flash floods triggered by heavy rain across Oman since Sunday, authorities have reported.

The floods have been reported in the north and east regions of Oman following violent thunderstorms, heavy rain, and strong winds that began on Sunday.

An official news agency initially reported on Sunday that nine schoolchildren and three adults tragically lost their lives after “their vehicles got swept away in gushing wadi waters.”

Five individuals were also reported missing in the floods that struck the northeast of the country.

Later, State media reported on Tuesday that at least 18 people had lost their lives so far. 

Meanwhile, the sultanate’s Council of Ministers released a statement expressing deep sorrow and extending sincere condolences and sympathies to the families and relatives of the school students who tragically lost their lives in the Governorate of A’Sharqiyah.

Rescue operations are underway in Oman as authorities announced the closure of schools in six governorates, including Muscat, due to unstable weather conditions, according to a statement from United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA) on Monday.

Heavy rains were also expected over Dubai in the neighboring United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and other neighboring countries.

Oman experienced heavy rainfall and ensuing floods in February, which claimed the lives of three young children.


Press TV’s website can also be accessed at the following alternate addresses:

www.presstv.co.uk

Mass rallies held in major US cities in support of Gaza

Pro-Palestinian protests continue in the US, the major ally of Israel, with demonstrators demanding a ceasefire in Gaza and blocking roadways in the states of California, Illinois, New York and the Pacific Northwest as part of a national “economic blockade to free Palestine.”

The organizing A15 Action group said on its website that “the global economy is complicit in genocide and together we will coordinate to disrupt and blockade economic logistical hubs and the flow of capital.”

“In each city, we will identify and blockade major choke points in the economy, focusing on points of production and circulation with the aim of causing the most economic impact,” the group added.

Protesters caused traffic congestion in San Francisco by blocking several freeway sections in Oakland and the Golden Gate Bridge during the peak of the morning commute.

On the Golden Gate Bridge, traffic was disrupted in both directions by protesters holding up a sign that said, “Halt the universe for Gaza.”

“There’s genocide going on across the world and people have to be informed about it, whether it’s going to work or on social media,” one protester shouted.

“People need to stay informed of what’s going on, babies are dying,” he continued

In Chicago, demonstrators linked arms and blocked lanes leading to O’Hare International Airport, resulting in major traffic and prompting some travelers to exit vehicles and walk to terminals.

Protesters say they chose O’Hare in part because it is one of the largest airports in the US.

At least 40 people were arrested during the demonstrations, authorities said.

Anti-war protesters have held demonstrations in Chicago nearly every day since Israel’s war on Gaza that has killed at least 33,797 people in Gaza, mostly women and children, and wounded another 76,465 individuals, according to the health ministry in the territory.

Protesters marching into Brooklyn, New York also blocked Manhattan-bound traffic on the Brooklyn Bridge. New York Police made numerous arrests, saying at least 150 protesters were initially involved in the march but that number quickly grew.

The Washington State Department of Transportation reported that a demonstration in the vicinity of Seattle caused the closure of the primary road leading to Seattle-Tacoma International Airport. Images shared on social media depicted individuals standing on the highway, holding a banner and waving Palestinian flags.

Demonstrators waving Palestinian flags disrupted traffic flow on both sides of the Valero Energy Company headquarters in San Antonio, leading to congestion in the northwest part of the city.

Road blockages from protests were also reported in Philadelphia, Florida, Texas, and in Ottawa, Canad

Israel began the war on Gaza on October 7 after the Palestinian resistance movement Hamas carried out Operation Al-Aqsa Storm against the usurping entity in retaliation for the regime’s intensified atrocities against the Palestinian people.

The regime has cut off fuel, electricity, food, and water to the more than two million Palestinians living there.

According to the UN, the ongoing Israeli genocide has resulted in the internal displacement of 85% of Gaza’s population, who are now facing severe shortages of food, clean water, and medicine.

Israel kidnapped 3,000 Palestinians since start of genocidal war: Report

A human rights group says Israeli forces have kidnapped 3,000 Palestinians from Gaza since the start of the aggression on the besieged strip last October, including women and children.

“Since the onset of the genocidal military campaign against Gaza, Israeli forces have detained at least 3,000 Palestinian residents of Gaza, including women, children, elderly people, as well as professionals such as doctors, nurses, teachers and journalists,” Al Mezan Center for Human Rights said in a report on Monday.

According to the report, around 1,650 Gazans are held in total isolation from the outside world at Nafha and Negev (Ketziot) prisons “under the Unlawful Combatants Law”, and are denied access to lawyer and legal advice.

This law “has been extensively utilized on Palestinian residents of Gaza as an alternative to administrative detention”, which is commonly used against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank and East al-Quds.

Under its policy of administrative detention, the occupying regime detains Palestinians without trial or charge for up to six months; a period which can be extended for an indefinite number of times.

Citing their testimonies, Al Mezan said the detainees are subjected to torture and inhumane treatment from the moment of their arrest.

“They were forced to strip naked, wear blindfolds, and have their wrists tied. They were also brutally beaten, deprived of sleep for several days, denied food and deliberately starved as a form of torture and collective punishment.”

Noting that the “systematic and widespread” torture inflicted upon Palestinian detainees also constitutes crimes against humanity, the group called upon the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court to “swiftly” issue arrest warrants against “all individuals implicated in perpetrating and/or ordering such egregious crimes.”

Issam Younis, director general of Al Mezan, said, “The evidence and testimonies gathered by our lawyer reveal a level of reprisals and torture that lacks any semblance of humanity. What Israel is doing to Palestinian detainees forms part of its genocide against the Palestinian people.”

“It is imperative to halt this genocide and ensure accountability for those responsible for heinous genocidal acts.”

Al Mezan also urged the international community to shoulder its “moral and legal responsibilities” and prevent and punish the crime of genocide, as well as to pressure Israel to comply with international law and abide by its obligations as an occupying power.

Israel waged the genocidal war on Gaza after the Palestinian resistance movement Hamas carried out a historic operation against the occupying entity on October 7 in retaliation for its intensified atrocities against the Palestinian people.

Since the start of the war, the Israeli aggression has killed at least 33,800 Palestinians, mostly women and children.