In the early hours of April 14, a large number of missiles and drones were launched at the territory of Israel. According to the Iranian Foreign Ministry, this attack was undertaken as part of the right to self-defence stipulated in Article 51 of the UN Charter in response to the attacks on Iranian targets in the region, including the strike on the consular section of the Iranian Embassy in Damascus on April 1, which our country strongly denounced. Unfortunately, due to the position adopted by its Western members, the Security Council was unable to provide a proper response to the strike on the Iranian consular mission.

We express our extreme concern at yet another dangerous escalation in the region. We have repeatedly warned that the numerous unresolved crises in the Middle East, primarily in the area of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, which are often fueled by irresponsible provocative actions, will exacerbate tensions. We call on all parties involved in the conflict to exercise restraint. We expect the regional states to resolve the existing problems through political and diplomatic means. We believe it is important for the constructively-minded international players to contribute to this effort.

We encourage the Russian citizens residing in Israel and neighbouring countries, primarily Jordan, Lebanon and Syria, to follow media reports and practical recommendations posted on the Foreign Ministry’s newsfeed, the official websites of Russian foreign missions in the above countries, the Consular Department and the Foreign Ministry’s Crisis Management Centre (department), including in the relevant section of the updated Assistant Abroad mobile application.