- Safiu Kehinde
Many staff of the Iranian state media have been feared dead as Israel bombed the TV station with multiple air strikes on the building located in Theran.
The air strikes were captured on live TV, with debris falling in the studio and a presenter heading off camera.
Confirming the attack, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) says in a statement that the air force targeted a “communication centre that was being used for military purposes by the Iranian Armed Forces”.
The IDF alleged that the building was being used “under the guise of civilian activity” and that is strike “directly harmed the military capabilities of the Iranian Armed Forces”.
“Prior to the strike, the IDF provided an effective advanced warning to the civilian population, including phone calls, and conducted the strike in a precise manner in order to mitigate harm to civilians as far as feasible.” the Force claimed.
According to the BBC, the Israeli military earlier warned people in parts of Tehran’s District 3 to leave as it was targeting “military infrastructure” in the area.
In reaction, the Iran state TV disclosed that “a number” of its staff have been killed in an Israeli strike on its headquarters in Tehran.
A reporter for the state broadcaster said that they were “working until the very last moment before the attack”.
The station’s Head of Broadcasting, Peyman Jebeli, appeared on state TV showing a blood-stained paper.
He however held that the state TV and its employees are “standing until the end”.
Elsewhere, Iran accuses Israel of hitting a hospital in the west of the country, and Iran’s health ministry says at least 224 people have been killed by Israeli strikes since Friday
Overnight, Iranian missiles again penetrated Israel’s Iron Dome defence system overnight – the number killed in Israel since Friday has risen to 24.
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