UNITED NATIONS, April 2. /TASS/. Russia strongly condemns Israeli airstrikes inside Syria and regards them as a gross violation of the country's sovereignty, said Russia’s envoy to the UN, Vasily Nebenzya.
"The Russian Federation strongly condemns the ongoing airstrikes on the sovereign territory of Syria, viewing them as a gross violation of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of that country," he said at a meeting of the Security Council. "We believe such aggressive actions by Israel, which are designed to further inflame the conflict, are unacceptable and must be stopped."
The diplomat said Russia calls on West Jerusalem to abandon "the practice of provocative forceful actions on the territory of Syria" and other neighboring countries, as such actions are fraught with "extremely dangerous risks and consequences" for the entire region.
Nebenzya also added that the blame for a potential escalation in the Middle East due to Israel's strike on Iranian diplomatic facilities in Syria will lie entirely on the conscience of the US, the UK and France.
"There is no need to call on others to de-escalate and label the victims of this attack as aggressors. In this context, any possible escalation of the situation will be entirely <...> on your conscience," he said, addressing Western representatives of the permanent members of the UN Security Council.
On April 1, the Syrian news agency SANA reported that the Israeli Air Force struck a building in Damascus. Iranian news media said the building was an Iranian consulate. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said seven military advisers were killed: generals Mohammed Reza Zahedi and Mohammad Hadi Haji Rahimi, along with five other officers.
Russia has strongly condemned the Israeli attack on the consulate and requested a UN Security Council meeting on the issue. A representative of the Israel Defense Forces declined to comment on reports about the Israeli strike on Damascus in response to a request from TASS.