Kremlin ‘strongly condemns sharp escalation’ following Israeli airstrikes on Iran

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Friday that Moscow was “concerned” and “strongly condemns the sharp escalation of tensions,” following Israel’s strike on Iran, Interfax reported.

“At the president’s direction, the Foreign Ministry will issue a detailed statement in the very near future, which will then be sent to the United Nations,” Peskov added.

Israeli warplanes carried out strikes on Iranian territory in the early hours of June 13. The operation, called Operation Rising Lion, reportedly killed several high-ranking officials, including Hossein Salami, the commander of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, and Mohammad Bagheri, the chief of staff of Iran’s armed forces, as well as a number of nuclear scientists.

In a televised address, Brigadier General Abolfazl Shekarchi, a spokesman for Iran’s armed forces, vowed that Iran’s military would respond to the Israeli operation. On Friday morning, the Israel Defense Forces said dozens of drones had been launched from Iran toward Israeli territory and that Israeli forces were prepared to intercept them.