Israel Strikes Iranian State TV Studio Deemed a Military Asset

Video showed a female anchor yelling after a blast in the background and the studio filling with debris. Iran has called the strike a ‘war crime.’

Israel struck a studio used by Iranian state media on June 16, according to the Israel Defense Forces (IDF).

“Today, the Israeli Air Force conducted a precise strike based on intelligence targeting a communication center that was being used for military purposes by the Iranian Armed Forces. The building was used by the Iranian Armed Forces under the guise of civilian activity, covering up the military use of the center’s infrastructure and assets,” the IDF wrote on social media platform X.

The IDF said it warned civilians, including via phone calls, ahead of the strike to minimize any harm to them.

Video of the strike shows a female anchor for Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB) presenting on camera when a blast occurs in the background, prompting her to walk away from the anchor desk. Someone could be heard yelling “Allahu Akhbar.” Debris can be seen flying throughout the studio. The channel then switched to prerecorded programming.

“The Iranian regime’s propaganda and incitement broadcasting authority was attacked by the IDF after a large-scale evacuation of the surrounding area. We will hit the Iranian dictatorship everywhere,” Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz wrote on X.

Iran has called the strike a “war crime.”

“The world is watching: targeting Iran’s news agency #IRIB‘s office during live broadcast is a wicked act of war crime,” Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baqaei wrote on X.

Baqaei called on the U.N. Security Council to intervene in Israel’s strikes on Iran.

Israel began its strikes on Iran on June 12, as it said that Iran was close to producing a nuclear weapon. Israel has targeted Iranian nuclear, energy, and other sites in addition to the country’s ballistic missiles. Iran has retaliated with strikes on Israeli population centers such as Tel Aviv and Jerusalem.

Israel has eliminated senior members of Iran’s military. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has not ruled out killing Iran’s supreme leader, Ali Khamenei.

“It’s not going to escalate the conflict, it’s going to end the conflict,” he told ABC News, adding that Israel is “doing what we need to do.”

At least 224 people have been killed, while at least 1,277 others have been hospitalized in Iran, according to the country’s health ministry. In Israel, at least 24 have been killed, while 592 others have been wounded, according to official numbers from the Jewish state.

U.S. President Donald Trump has declined to say whether the United States is directly involved in the war. Instead, he said that Iran should “talk immediately” in negotiations about its nuclear program.

The United States has been indirectly involved in the war, intercepting Iranian ballistic missiles. It has not been directly defending Israel.