Israeli attack on Iranian prison killed 71 people: Spokesman

ANKARA

An Israeli airstrike on a prison in the Iranian capital Tehran last week killed 71 people and injured many others, Iran said on Sunday.

Asghar Jahangir, a spokesman for Iran’s judiciary, condemned the attack on Evin Prison as a “full-fledged crime by Zionist forces,” stressing that the strike also impacted civilians living near the prison’s visitation and judicial buildings, according to Iran’s Mehr news agency.

The casualties include prison administrative staff, conscripted soldiers, inmates, relatives of prisoners, as well as civilians living near the prison, some of whom lost their lives in the airstrike, the spokesman added.

The airstrike took place last Monday as part of a broader wave of attacks launched by the Israeli army on multiple targets across Tehran, according to Israeli officials.

A 12‑day conflict between Israel and Iran erupted on June 13 when Israel launched airstrikes on Iranian military, nuclear, and civilian sites, killing at least 606 people and injuring 5,332, according to Iran’s Health Ministry.

Tehran launched retaliatory missile and drone strikes, killing at least 29 people and wounding more than 3,400, according to figures released by the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.

The conflict came to a halt under a US-sponsored ceasefire that took effect last Tuesday, one day after the airstrike on the prison.