Modi speaks to Iran president, calls for de-escalation amid conflict with Israel

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday spoke with Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian, expressing concern over the recent escalation in the Iran-Israel conflict.

In a social media post, Modi said that he reiterated the call for “immediate de-escalation, dialogue and diplomacy as the way forward” amid the escalating tensions in West Asia.

The prime minister’s statement came hours after Tehran launched fresh strikes against Tel Aviv.

Early on Sunday, the United States dropped bombs on three nuclear sites in Iran, CNBC reported.

America’s decision to directly enter the conflict came over a week after the Israeli military struck what it claimed were nuclear targets, and also other sites, in Iran with the aim of stalling Tehran’s nuclear programme. Iran also retaliated with missile attacks on Israel.

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Hours after the US strikes on Sunday, Iran launched its twentieth wave of missile and drone strikes against Israeli military targets, CNBC reported, quoting Iran’s state-owned media Fars. The Israeli Health Ministry said that 86 persons were injured in the latest round of Iranian missile strikes, The Times of Israel reported.
The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corp said that “the criminal American regime” will suffer the consequences after bombing Iran, Al Jazeera reported. Iran said it has the right to resist “with all its might” after the US’s attacks, the news outlet reported.
The International Atomic Energy Agency said that after the US strikes “no increase in off-site radiation levels” was reported in the region. The global nuclear watchdog added it would continue assessing the situation in Iran as more information emerged. Rafael Mariano Grossi, the director general of the agency, also announced an emergency meeting of the board of governors on Monday.
Several European leaders, including European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, have urged Iran to return to nuclear talks. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, however, said that the US and Israel “decided to blow up” diplomacy when they launched strikes on the country’s nuclear sites. The minister said that Israel’s June 13 strikes “blew up” negotiations between Tehran and Washington. He added that the US similarly disrupted its discussions with European powers this week through its Sunday strikes.
Araghchi added that he will fly to Moscow and have a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday. “Russia is a friend of Iran and we enjoy a strategic partnership,” Al Jazeera quoted him as saying. “We always consult with each other and coordinate our positions.”