Raisi says Tehran will respond to Israel assassination of IRGC advisors

Raisi denounced the heinous assassination of five of Iran’s most eminent advisors by the criminal Zionist regime in a condolence letter on Saturday night.

The message, released by his website, is as follows:

Once again, the criminal Zionist regime, in a terrorist act, openly violated the airspace of Syria and martyred a number of Syrian forces and five military advisors of the Islamic Republic of Iran, who were present in Syria in the form of advisors and guarding the Ahl al-Bayt (AS) Shrines.

Condemning this cowardly assassination, I condole the martyrdom of the honorable advisors of Islamic Iran, Hojatollah Omidvar, Ali Aqazadeh, Hossein Mohammadi, Saeed Karimi and Mohammad Amin Samadi, to Imam Mahdi (AS), the Supreme Leader and Commander-in-Chief, the Iranian nation, the fighters of the resistance front, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, and the comrades and families of these high-ranking martyrs.

Undoubtedly, the continuation of such terrorist and criminal actions, which indicate the growing failure of the illegitimate Zionist regime to achieve its evil goals and the depth of desperation and helplessness against the fighters of the resistance front, will not go unanswered by the Islamic Republic of Iran.

The recent crimes of the usurping Zionist regime, which are taking place by violating all international treaties and human principles, under the shadow of the support of the domineering countries, America at the head of all of them, and the silence of the world assemblies, are definitely another stain on the black file of all self-proclaimed human rights advocates.

The IRGC advisors were assassinated in an Israeli airstrike on a residential building in the tightly guarded Mezzeh neighborhood, west of the Syrian capital Damascus.

Earlier in the day, the IRGC said that four of its members who were in Syria on a military advisory mission had been assassinated in an Israeli hit on a Damascus residential building. It was announced thereafter that a fifth advisor had passed away from his wounds.

The IRGC named its martyred advisors as Hojjatollah Omidvar, Ali Aqazadeh, Hossein Mohammadi, Saeed Karimi and Mohammad Amin Samadi.

At Damascus’ request, Iran continues an advisory mission in Syria to assist the war-torn nation in fending off extremists supported by foreign powers who have been battling the country’s democratically elected government since 2011.

Since the onset of its continuing genocide against the Gaza Strip in early October, the Israeli regime has been stepping up the number of bombings on Syria.

In an X post on Saturday, the Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian said that Iranian military advisors will continue their anti-terror mission in the region in defiance of Israel’s “cowardly” assassination operations.

“Iran’s military advisors will strongly continue activities to fight terrorism and ensure regional security,” he added.

The senior Iranian diplomat sent condolences to the families of the deceased and wished them patience and serenity.

Amir Abdollahian went on to note, “The Israeli regime is the main accomplice to terrorist currents and enemy number one of regional security.”

“Undoubtedly, the Zionists’ defeat against the will of the people of Gaza cannot be compensated by such cowardly terrorist acts.”

In a message on Saturday night, Iran’s judiciary chief extended his condolences to the families of those who lost their lives in an Israeli airstrike on the Syrian capital.

“The usurping and desperate Zionists, who have not been able to stop their crimes and oppression in Gaza for over 100 days, have attacked residential areas in Syria to save themselves from their inevitable destruction. During this attack, they martyred five Iranian military advisors who were in Syria at the request of the Syrian government to protect the security of the region”, Mohseni Ejeie said in a statement.

“I offer my condolences to the Leader of the Islamic Revolution, the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Iran as well as family members of martyrs Hojjatollah Omidvar, Ali Aghazadeh, Hossein Mohammadi, Saeed Karimi, Mohammad Amin Samadi.”

Israel assassinated Brigadier General Seyyed Razi Mousavi, another Iranian military advisor, in a drone attack on Damascus in December 2023. Mousavi managed the Resistance Front’s logistical support in Syria and was a senior member of the IRGC.

In a statement on Saturday night, the World Assembly of Islamic Awakening has condemned the “assassination” as saying that “the criminal Zionist regime once again showed its animosity toward the Iranian nation by brutally assassinating five military advisors of our country in Syria.”

The misconduct demonstrated that the only way to combat the child-killing regime is to resist it until the cancerous tumor is completely eliminated, the statement said.

It went on to say that the Israeli leadership is becoming increasingly desperate as a result of more than 100 days of carnage and death of Palestinians in Gaza.

Referring to the martyrdom of Iranian military advisors, the assembly stated that such steps are taken out of despair and impotence, but the regime should be aware that its actions would not go unpunished.

The spokesman for Iran’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs expressed vehement condemnation of recent Israeli airstrikes.

Kanaani denounced the Israeli actions as a repeated violation of Syria’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.

He characterized the aggressive and provocative attacks as indicative of the perceived weakness of the Israeli regime in confronting resistance forces in Gaza and the West Bank, labeling it a “criminal and child-killing Zionist regime.”

Emphasizing the need for a strong response, Kanaani called on governments, regional and international organizations, including the United Nations Security Council, to decisively condemn the aggressive, terrorist, and criminal actions of the Israeli regime.

Issuing a message, Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said a severe punishment awaits the Israeli regime for assassinating five Iranian military advisors.

Ghalibaf also extended condolences to the Leader of the Islamic Revolution, the Resistance forces, the Iranian nation, and the bereaved families over the heinous terrorist attack.