The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, today condemned the Israeli bombing of a synagogue in Tehran and challenged pro-Israel organizations and personalities backing the war to condemn the attack.
An Israeli bombing destroyed the Rafi-Nia synagogue in Tehran amid other attacks on civilian sites across the country that killed more than a dozen people overnight. Footage showed civil defense workers amid the rubble, with Hebrew-language books scattered on the ground.
SEE: Synagogue in Tehran ‘completely destroyed’ in US-Israeli attack
In a statement, CAIR said:
“We strongly condemn the Israeli regime’s bombing of a synagogue in Tehran, which was the predictable end result of the indiscriminate U.S.-Israel bombing campaign against mosques, hospitals, schools, apartments and other civilian sites across Iran.
“We challenge the various Israel advocacy groups and politicians that support this war in the name of protecting Israel to condemn Israel’s synagogue attack and demand an end to this illegal and immoral war of choice, which may escalate into an outright genocide at 8 p.m. this evening.
“Their continued support for this war and their silence regarding Israel’s attack on the Iranian Jewish community would be the latest sign that the Israel lobby’s top priority is protecting the Israeli government from legitimate criticism, even at risk to the lives of Iranian Jews.”
He noted that earlier today, CAIR condemned President Trump’s “unhinged, racist and genocidal” rhetoric and reiterated its call for Congress to reconvene and vote to end the war on Iran after the president posted a message online saying a “whole civilization will die tonight.”
SEE: CAIR Calls President Trump’s Threat to Destroy Iranian Civilization ‘Unhinged, Racist and Genocidal’
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CONTACT: CAIR National Deputy Director Edward Ahmed Mitchell, 404-285-9530, e-Mitchell@cair.com; CAIR Government Affairs Director Robert McCaw, 202-742-6448, rmccaw@cair.com; CAIR National Communications Director Ibrahim Hooper, 202-744-7726, ihooper@cair.com; CAIR National Communications Manager Ismail Allison, 202-770-6280, iallison@cair.com