TEHRAN - Director of the Islamic Culture and Relations Organization (ICRO) Mohammad-Mehdi Imanipur, in a message to the religious authorities and thinkers of various faiths, highlighted the important duty of believers to take action and address the atrocities of the Zionist regime.

“Since dawn on Friday, June 13, the world has witnessed the attacks of the Zionist regime, violating the territorial integrity and national sovereignty of the Islamic Republic of Iran by targeting residential areas, the homes of nuclear scientists, and senior military officials, shedding the blood of innocent women and children,” Imanipur was quoted as saying by IRNA.

“The brutal attacks on nuclear sites by the Zionist regime is not something we can remain silent about. This adventurous behavior of the occupying regime will undoubtedly exacerbate the potential war in the region,” he added.

“It is evident that the Islamic Republic of Iran possesses the necessary capability for self-defense, and in recent days, it has been compelled to provide minimal responses to the regime's aggressions. As you are aware, the Leader of the Islamic Revolution has prohibited our nuclear officials from developing nuclear weapons due to the potential for mass destruction, demonstrating the Islamic Republic's goodwill within the framework of religious and humanitarian principles,” Imanipur noted.

“In these circumstances, we expect the religious authorities and thinkers around the world who are concerned about international peace and security to not only condemn this heinous aggression immediately but also to take urgent and collective action to confront this dangerous adventure, which undoubtedly poses an unprecedented threat to global peace and security,” he concluded.

On Friday, June 13, Israel launched a large-scale military offensive against the Islamic Republic of Iran, marking a significant escalation in regional tensions and raising serious concerns over violations of international law amid the ongoing conflict in Gaza.

Following the strikes, Iran started a counteroffensive plan, launching missiles into the occupied territories. In a statement early Saturday, the IRGC said the response, codenamed Operation True Promise III, involved the aerospace division firing a wave of ballistic missiles and deploying armed drones against “strategic” Israeli targets.

SS/SAB