The attackwas condemned by numerous international organizations and countries in Europe, Asia and elsewhere, and many argued that the attack violated international law.[7] Israel said the building was not a diplomatic building but rather a military installment of theQuds Force; several of those killed were Quds Force activists. France24 showed published images showing the building was indeed a consulate and part of Iran's embassy complex.[8] Further, the building also housed the Iranian ambassador, although he wasn't home at the time and survived the attack.[6] Embassies around the world frequently hostmilitary attaches.[9]
Since 2010, Iran (and others) have accused Israel ofkilling Iranian nuclear scientists inside Iran.[15] In 2018, Israeli spies raided an Iranian military facility in Tehran.[15][16] In February 2022, Israel was accused of having assassinating an Iranian commander in Tehran.[15] Iran also accused Israel of attacking a military facility inIsfahan in January 2023.[15]
Since 2013 Iran has maintained apresence of its troops in Syria in response to the Syrian civil war, as Syria is a crucial ally of Iran. Additionally, it has been involved in training and funding paramilitary forces fromHezbollah, along with foreign militias fromIraq andAfghanistan, not only in Syria but also in neighboringLebanon.[17] Since the outbreak of theSyrian civil war in 2011, Israel has conducted hundreds of airstrikes targeting Hezbollah assets within the country.[18]
With the onset of theGaza war in October 2023, Israel has increased the intensity of its attacks on Syria.[19] From 12 to 22 October 2023, Israel launched at least three attacks on airports in Syria, particularly onDamascus andAleppo.[20][21] Notably, Israel carried out the assassination ofRazi Mousavi, a senior Iranian general, in the Syrian capital of Damascus on 25 December 2023, and Brigadier GeneralSadegh Omidzadeh, an intelligence officer with the IRGC Quds Force, on 20 January 2024.[22][23][24]
Iranian consular building
The target of the attack was a five-storey consular building, which contained the residence of the Iranian ambassador to Syria.[25] The building was next to the main Iranian embassy in Damascus.[25] In front of the building was a plaque that read that the building belongs to the "consular section of the Iranian embassy".[8] The Israeli attack destroyed the entire building. The Iranian ambassador survived, as he was in the building adjacent to his residence at the time of the attack.[6]
IranianBrigadier GeneralMohammad Reza Zahedi, was staying in this building at the time of the attack, along with two other commanders.[26] The government of Syria has been inviting Iranian officers to serve asmilitary advisors since 2011.[26] Most embassies around the world host military and intelligence personnel.[9] Analysts opined that the Iranian officers likely felt protected by international norms that prohibit attacks against diplomatic missions.[26] Sources suggest that the Iranian officers were discussing "operational logistics and coordination",[26] or may have been meeting with members fromPalestinian Islamic Jihad.[27]
Israeli claims
The attack was widely reported to have destroyed an Iranian consulate in Syria.[28][1] However, the IDF said "I repeat, this is no consulate and this is no embassy. This is a military building of Quds forces disguised as a civilian building in Damascus."[29] In response to similar Israeli claimsFrance 24 published photos showing the building destroyed was indeed the Iranian consulate and part of Iran's embassy complex.[8] Further, the building also housed the Iranian ambassador, although he wasn't home at the time and survived the attack.[6] Chilean ambassador Jorge Heine pointed out that most embassies around the world host military and intelligence personnel ("Military attaché").[9]
Attack
On April 1, the Iranian consulate annex building (hosting the Iranian ambassador's residence) in the Iranian embassy complex in Damascus was destroyed by an Israeli airstrike. Iranian ambassador Hossein Akbari alleged that the consulate building "was targeted with six missiles fromIsraeli F-35 warplanes".[30]The Guardian stated that Israeli warplanes were responsible for the attack.[31]The New York Times (NYT) stated that four Israeli officials anonymously confirmed Israeli responsibility for the attack.[32] Various other media outlets did not definitively attribute the attack to Israel, and the Israeli government refused to comment on the matter.[33][1][34][6]
The suspected primary target of the attack was the Quds Force commander of the IRGC, Brigadier General Mohammad Reza Zahedi, who was killed in the attack. According toThe Guardian, Zahedi was a critical figure in the relationship between Iran and Hezbollah.[35][36]
Footage and photos from the consulate area after the attack showed extensive damage, fire, and smoke.[30] Iranian media reported that the building had been completely destroyed and that the ambassador and his family, who were housed in the embassy next door, were unharmed.[37]
The unused Canadian embassy building on the other side of the consular building was also damaged in the attack, with at least some of its windows destroyed. It has been closed since 2012 because of the Syrian civil war, but it is still owned by the Canadian government.[38]
Casualties
Sixteen were killed in total: seven Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) soldiers, five Iran-backed militiamen, one Hezbollah fighter, one Iranian advisor, and two civilians (a Syrian woman and her child).[3] In addition to Zahedi, the following Iranians were killed: Zahedi's deputy Brigadier General Mohammad Hadi Haji Rahimi, Hossein Aman Elahi, Sayid Mehdi Jalalati, Ali Agha Babaei, Sayid Ali Salehi Roozbahani, and Mohsen Sedaghat.[35] Zahedi was the most senior IRGC officer to be killed since theassassination of Qasem Soleimani by the U.S. in January 2020.[39] According to Bloomberg the IRGC command wing in Syria was eliminated in the strike.[40]
Analysis
JournalistsPeter Beaumont and Emma Graham-Harrison ofThe Guardian wrote that the Israeli strike was a miscalculation that had "bulldozed through everyred line to attack a location that Tehran maintains was tantamount to attacking Iranian soil."[28]
Sanam Vakil, the director of the Middle East and North Africa programme at theChatham House think tank, stated that the Damascus attack and the "breach" of the Vienna convention was "the straw that broke the camel's back."[28]
Legality
Diplomatic premises, like homes and schools, are considered "civilian objects" underinternational law.
Diplomatic buildings are entitled to further protections from attack or other interference by the host country under international customary law, codified in the1961 Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations and the1963 Convention on Consular Relations.[41] However, the responsibilities under the Convention only apply to the host country, in this case Syria, with the Convention saying nothing about attacks by third states in foreign countries.[42][43]
A UN-commissioned panel of experts on international law consisting ofBen Saul, Morris Tidball-Binz,Javaid Rehman, Livingstone Sewanyana, and Cecilia M. Bailliet wrote that Israel had provided no legal justification for the attack, and had failed to report it to theUnited Nations Security Council. Therefore, in their view, it violated Article 2(4) banning recourse to force against another state. They also issued a warning that the Israeli officials involved in the strike might have committed crimes.[44] The subsequent Iranian retaliation was also, in their view, prohibited under international law, since self-defense is only justified to deter continuing armed attacks, and the strike on the Iranian Embassy had ended 12 days earlier.[45]
Aurel Sari, a professor of international law atExeter University, argued that as a third state, Israel "is not bound by the law of diplomatic relations with regard to Iran's Embassy in Syria,"[43] however "unless Israel was able to justify the airstrike as an act of self-defense" it would be in violation ofArticle 2(4) of the United Nations Charter. Whether self-defense can justify an attack on the territory of a third country is a subject of academic debate.[43]
Russia requested theUN Security Council to discuss the strike.[85] A statement condemning the attack was drafted by Russia to be issued by the Security Council, but the Western member states opposed the issuance of any statement.[86][87][88] During the briefing in the United Nations Security Council, the representatives of many countries (such asEcuador,Guyana,Slovenia,South Korea, andSwitzerland) noted that any attack on diplomatic and consular premises violates theCharter of the United Nations as well as the1961 Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations and the1963 Vienna Convention on Consular Relations. They also expressed concern that the incident could further escalate the regional conflict. The representative ofJapan only expressed concern, and the representative of theUnited Kingdom noted the importance of "respect ... for diplomatic premises", but also criticized Iran.[46] The spokesman of theUnited States National Security Council only stated that the US was not involved and had no prior knowledge of the attack.[89] Israel had notified the US in advance that it would be operating in Syria, but did not identify the target.[90] The Representative of Russia criticized the statements made by the US and others including France, considering them to bedouble standard.[46]
United States officials said Israel had notified the US in advance that it would be operating in Syria, but did not identify the target. APentagon spokesperson said Israel had provided no advance warning of the strike.[90]
The Israeli military spokesman claimed that the building was neither a consulate nor an embassy, but a military building of Quds forces "disguised as a civilian structure in Damascus".[95] Israel told the U.S. that a retaliatory attack by Iran would prompt a robust response from Israel.[96][97]
Seven Israeli embassies were evacuated in response to the potential threat of an Iranian retaliatory attack, after Iran publicly blamed Israel and vowed retaliation.[34] The IDF deployed GPS jamming systems within Tel Aviv to safeguard against potential aerial attacks by Iran.[98] Initial U.S. intelligence anticipated a significant attack on U.S. or Israeli assets as soon as the week of 8–12 April.[99]
Iran
Ali Khamenei leading the funeral for the IRGC soldiers on 4 April
In several cities across Iran, including the capital,Tehran, as well asTabriz andIsfahan, large crowds of protesters gathered waving Palestinian and Iranian flags and demanding revenge.[100][101] The Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei vowed a harsh response to the attack. Khamenei's political advisorAli Shamkhani, said that the United States remains directly responsible.[102] Iran also sent a letter to the United Nations Security Council, saying it "reserves its legitimate and inherent right to respond decisively".[103] Syria's Foreign Minister condemned the attack, calling it aterrorist attack.[104]
On 5 April 2024, Iran told the United States to "step aside" as it prepared for retaliation against Israel.[105] On 13 April 2024, theIranian military launched its Operation True Promise,[106] attacking Israel from its own soil for the first time,[107] firing more than 300standoff weapons at Israel, including at least 170aerial drones, 30cruise missiles, and 120ballistic missiles. The attack, which constituted the largest single drone attack in history, was described as a success by Iran[108] and as a failure by Israel, the latter saying that its air defenses, buttressed by those of allies, destroyed almost all the incoming weapons before they could reach their targets.[109][110] That same day, theIRGC Navyboarded and seized Portuguese container shipMSC Aries in the Strait of Hormuz via helicopter, claiming it as "linked to Israel"[111] and "violating maritime laws".[112] On 18 April 16 shipping associations sent a joint letter to the United Nations requesting every effort to release the captive crew ofMSC Aries, and for "enhanced military presence, missions and patrols in the region to protect seafarers",[113]
^Picheta, Rob (14 April 2024)."Why Iran attacked Israel and what comes next".CNN. Retrieved18 July 2024.Tehran's attack targeted the Nevatim airbase, an Iranian army official said on Sunday, alleging that this is where Israel's early April strike on the Iranian consulate was launched from.
^Taub 2024: Article 22 of the Convention on Diplomatic Relations states: “The premises of the mission shall be inviolable. The agents of the receiving State may not enter them, except with the consent of the head of the mission. The receiving State is under a special duty to take all appropriate steps to protect the premises of the mission against any intrusion or damage and to prevent any disturbance of the peace of the mission or impairment of its dignity.”Those protections remain in force even if the embassy is used for criminal or military purposes. The receiving state can break off diplomatic relations, or revoke the diplomatic immunity of specific individuals and eject them from the country, but it must still “respect and protect” the embassy buildings and their contents even after the mission has closed.
^'The experts warned that Israeli military personnel and civilian officials responsible for the attack may also have committed crimes under an international counter-terrorism treaty of 1971, the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of Crimes against Internationally Protected Persons. “It is an offence to violently attack the official premises or private accommodation of a diplomat where it is likely to endanger them. Iran, Israel and Syria are all parties to the treaty and all have criminal jurisdiction over such offences,” they recalled.'
^Toàn, Vũ (6 April 2024)."Vietnam condemns attack on Iranian embassy in Syria".VietnamPlus. Hanoi:Vietnam News Agency.Archived from the original on 8 April 2024. Retrieved8 April 2024.Vietnam condemns the attack on the Iranian embassy in Syria. All the buildings of diplomatic representative and consular offices must be respected and protected according to international law.
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