Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian was injured in an Israeli air strike that targeted a high-level meeting of the Supreme National Security Council in Tehran, Iran has officially confirmed. According to a report by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-affiliated Fars News Agency, Pezeshkian sustained a leg injury during the June 16 strike and was forced to escape through an emergency hatch. The missile attack reportedly involved six projectiles aimed at blocking escape routes and cutting off airflow in the underground meeting site. The revelation corroborates the president's own claim during a recent interview that Israel attempted to assassinate him. It also marks the first official acknowledgment of injuries sustained by Iranian leadership during the 12-day war in June. The targeted meeting reportedly included other top officials, including Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf and Judiciary Chief Mohseni Ejei. Fars said the strike bore similarities to Israel's earlier assassination of Hezbollah's longtime leader Hassan Nasrallah in Beirut. "The attackers targeted the building's entrances and exits... some officials, including the president, suffered minor injuries to their legs while leaving," the report noted, adding that electricity was cut off after the explosions. State media also reported that a nearby building used by Iran's state TV broadcaster was struck in the same attack. Investigations are underway to determine whether an insider may have provided intelligence to enable the precision strike. Iranian authorities have arrested over 700 individuals on suspicion of collaboration with Israel and are pushing a new emergency espionage law that includes the death penalty. In a controversial interview with American commentator Tucker Carlson, Pezeshkian said: "They did try [to assassinate me], yes... They acted accordingly, but they failed." He did not previously confirm being injured. The interview sparked backlash in Iran's parliament, with 24 MPs accusing the president of undermining national security. In a public letter, they criticized his openness to renewed negotiations with the U.S. and his cooperation with the now-expelled International Atomic Energy Agency. "Such messaging risks inviting further aggression," the MPs warned, saying the war had created "rare unity" around confronting the U.S. and Israel. — Agencies
