Iranian state-affiliated media reported Tuesday that a synagogue in Tehran was destroyed, with authorities blaming an Israeli airstrike, though there was no independent confirmation of the claim.
Senior members of Tehran’s Jewish community visited the site earlier in the day, where the synagogue lay in ruins. According to Iranian reports, the building was hit after what was described as an Israeli airstrike on a nearby structure in the early morning hours near Palestine Street.
The synagogue that was destroyed in Tehran
(Video: Mehr)
Footage published by Iranian outlets showed the damaged synagogue and religious books being removed from the debris.
Iranian media quoted Jewish community figures as sharply criticizing Israel, saying, “From the enemy, no other ‘gift’ could be expected for the holiday.”
Younes Hamami Lalehzar, a senior figure in Iran’s Jewish community, was seen at the scene walking among the rubble.
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Younes Hamami Lalehzar, a senior figure in Iran’s Jewish community, at the ruins of the attacked synagogue
In an official statement, the Jewish community in Iran condemned what it called “the brutal attacks carried out by the American-Israeli enemy against our beloved homeland and the ‘Rafi Nia’ synagogue.”
“We declare that we will stand by the people and the regime until our last breath to defend our homeland,” the statement said.
Earlier, Homayoun Sameh, the Jewish representative in Iran’s parliament, also criticized Israel and the United States, claiming that Torah scrolls were buried under the rubble.
“The Zionist regime did not spare this community during the Jewish holidays and attacked one of our oldest and most sacred synagogues,” he said.
Sameh added that the destruction of the building and the loss of religious texts would cause distress to the Jewish community.
There has been no confirmation from Israeli officials regarding the reported strike.