DUBAI, April 15. /TASS/. Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian told his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov that Russia plays an important role to resolve the crisis in the Gaza Strip and prevent further escalation in the Middle East, the Iranian Foreign Ministry said in a statement posted on its Telegram channel on Monday.

According to the statement, during a telephone conversation on April 14, "Abdollahian positively assessed Russia's stance on [Iran’s] legitimate actions…, praised the significant role of this country [Russia] in stopping the [Israeli] crimes, as well as the ongoing genocide [against the Palestinians] in the Gaza Strip, aggression against Palestine, as well as in preventing further escalation in the region."

The top diplomats of Russia and Iran held a telephone conversation on Sunday at the initiative of the Iranian side and, according to the statement from the Russian Foreign Ministry’s press office, "The main topic of discussion centered around the situation in the Middle East."

The Russian Foreign Ministry reported earlier that during the conversation: "The Iranian Foreign Minister informed his Russian counterpart about the actions taken by Tehran in response to the Israeli airstrike on the consular section of the Iranian Embassy in Damascus on April 1, which resulted in the death of Iranian officials."

Both sides "reaffirmed their support for an immediate ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, underscoring the urgency of resolving pressing humanitarian problems, and expressed their commitment to establishing lasting conditions for direct negotiations in accordance with the UN resolutions on a two-state solution to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict," the Russian Foreign Ministry added.

On the evening of April 13, Iran launched drones and missiles toward Israel in response to what it called "repeated crimes" from Tel Aviv, including the attack on the consular office of the Iranian Embassy in Damascus ascribed to Israel.

Tehran said that military facilities in Israel were targeted. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) claimed it intercepted 99% of the nearly 350 projectiles launched at Israel. Israel did not report any fatalities or serious injuries, saying minor damage had been caused to Nevatim Air Base.

On April 1, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Public Relations Department reported the death of seven Iranian military advisers in a strike by the Israeli air force on the Iranian consulate in the Syrian capital.

Two IRGC generals, Mohammad Reza Zahedi and Mohammad Hadi Haji Rahimi, and five officers were killed in the strike. According to Iran’s IRIB TV channel, Zahedi was in charge of Iran’s Al-Quds special forces in Lebanon and Syria. Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said that Tehran would make Israel repent for the strike, while President Ebrahim Raisi vowed that the attack would not go unanswered.