Iran’s military threatens attacks on US, Israeli banks after strike on Iranian lender

TEHRAN, Iran

Iran’s military threatened Wednesday to launch retaliatory attacks on American and Israeli banks in the region following an airstrike on a bank in Tehran.

In a statement, a spokesperson for the Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters, the unified command of Iran’s armed forces, said that a bank in the Iranian capital was struck by the US and Israel on Tuesday.

The spokesperson described the attack as an “illegitimate and unconventional act of war,” adding that it has left Iran’s armed forces with the right to target economic centers and banks belonging to the US and Israel across the region.

“The Americans should await our painful retaliatory action,” he warned.

The spokesperson also urged people in countries hosting US and Israeli banks to “stay out of a one-kilometre radius of these facilities.”

According to Iranian state media, several bank employees were killed in the strike on a bank in northern Tehran. Reports indicate the employees were working an extra shift to prepare the disbursement of February’s month-end salaries when the attack occurred.

More than 1,200 people have been killed, including then-Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and military officials, and over 10,000 others injured in Iran since the US and Israel staged a joint attack on Feb. 28, according to Iranian authorities.

Funeral ceremonies for slain military commanders, including former Revolutionary Guards commander Mohammad Pakpour, former armed forces chief of staff Abdolrahim Mosavi, and former Defense Council chief Ali Shamkhani, are set to take place in Tehran on Wednesday afternoon.

Tehran has retaliated with drone and missile strikes targeting Israel, Jordan, Iraq, and Gulf countries that are home to US military assets.