A synagogue in Tehran was reported as “completely destroyed” following overnight strikes attributed to the US and Israel, resulting in over a dozen fatalities across Iran. The Rafi-Nia Synagogue, significant for the local Jewish community, was hit during attacks that also damaged nearby residential buildings.
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A synagogue in Tehran was “completely destroyed” in overnight strikes reportedly by the United States and Israel, Iranian media reported Tuesday, as attacks across the country killed more than a dozen people. The Rafi-Nia Synagogue in central Tehran was destroyed during the strikes, according to the Shargh newspaper, which cited preliminary information. Iran’s semi-official Mehr news agency said the damage occurred after a projectile hit a residential building adjacent to the synagogue.
Footage from the scene showed civil defence workers searching through rubble, with Hebrew-language books scattered across the ground. Reports said the narrow streets in the area amplified the impact, leaving nearby buildings severely damaged inside and out. There was no immediate word on casualties at the synagogue site, reports Al Jazeera.
In a video shared by state-run IRIB News, Homayoun Sameh, a Jewish representative in Iran’s parliament, condemned the attack. “The Zionist regime showed no mercy to this community during the Jewish holidays and targeted one of our ancient and holy synagogues,” he said. “Unfortunately, during this attack, the synagogue building was completely destroyed and our Torah scrolls were left under the rubble.”
Judaism is one of Iran’s officially recognised minority religions, and the country is home to a small Jewish community. While no official figures are available, estimates suggest a few thousand Jews remain in Iran, with many having left after the 1979 Islamic Revolution.
Shargh described the Rafi-Nia Synagogue as one of the most important gathering places for Jews from the northeastern Khorasan region.
The strikes were among a series of US-Israeli attacks overnight, in which at least 15 people were killed across Iran, local media reported. Six bodies have been recovered from under the rubble of buildings in the city of Pardis, east of Tehran, Mehr reported.
Local officials said nine people were killed in an Israeli air attack on a residential neighbourhood in the city of Shahriar in the west of Tehran province, reports AL Jazeera.
Meanwhile, Israel carried out a new wave of attacks on Iran early Tuesday, while Iran responded with missile fire against Israel and its Gulf Arab neighbours. A gunfight erupted outside the Israeli Consulate in Istanbul on Tuesday. The exchange with police left two assailants dead while a third was captured. One police officer sustained injuries.
More than 1,900 people have been killed in Iran since the war began, but the government has not updated the toll for days.
