Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian sustained minor leg injuries during an Israeli airstrike that targeted a high-level government meeting in Tehran on June 15, a senior Iranian official has confirmed.
The strike, aimed at the leadership of Iran’s three branches of government, occurred during a Supreme National Security Council session in a secure government facility in western Tehran. The meeting, attended by top executive, legislative, and judicial officials, was held underground when the attack began.
“This attempt will not pass without Israel paying a price,” the senior official told Al Jazeera, speaking anonymously.
According to the semiofficial Fars news agency, six missiles struck the entrances and exits of the facility, effectively cutting off escape routes and severing air flow. The explosions also caused a power outage, plunging the facility into darkness.
Despite the conditions, President Pezeshkian and other officials escaped through a pre-designated emergency hatch. The president reportedly sustained minor leg injuries during the evacuation.
The Iranian government has since launched a probe into the possibility of Israeli espionage, citing the precision of the strike and the apparent intelligence Israel had on the meeting’s location and timing.
President Pezeshkian first disclosed the assassination attempt in an interview earlier this week, stating plainly that “Israel tried to kill me – not the United States.”
The incident occurred amid a 12-day military confrontation between Iran and Israel in June, the most intense conflict between the two nations in recent years. Tensions remain high as Iranian officials vow retaliation.
