Tehran – Ambassadors from 28 countries visited Iran Broadcasting (IRIB)’s bombed headquarters in the Islamic Republic on Sunday.
The diplomatic delegation walked through the shattered studio where two media workers were killed during live broadcasts, and witnessed firsthand the wounds of IRIB Chairman Payman Jeberg accusing Tel Aviv as “a fanatic target of the True Terror.”
The visit followed a direct strike last month at the Israeli regime’s IRIB headquarters, part of a 12-day war with Iran that began on June 13th.
On June 16, 11 missiles crashed into a fortified glass building complex in Ilibu, district 3 of Tehran during live news broadcasts.
The attack caused news editor Nima Rajabul and secretariat staff member Mazuume Ajimi to injure several others. Reza Javadipour, a member of the technical staff, succumbed to an injury a few days after the strike.
Not long ago, Israeli War Minister Israel Katz had publicly threatened Iran’s provincial broadcasters to “disappear.”
Studio’s “The Miracle of God”
After continuing the broadcast amid the explosion, Anchahar Emami, who became a global symbol of resistance, led the diplomats through the scene of the attack.
“It’s just a miracle of a chair that I was able to stay in my chair until the last moment was nothing more than a godly miracle,” he said, noting that the remains were scattered near her former news desk. “In every scene that airs globally in this attack, God’s hand was clearly visible.”
Emami spoke about how she maintained her professional calm despite multiple explosions.
She described the team’s determination as similar to “a soldier on the battlefield,” noting that she received an evacuation warning but chose to stay.
Irib Chairman Peyman Jebelli described the attack as part of a broader war with Israeli journalism. “We were expecting this attack as Israel is consistently targeting the media. Currently, 300 journalists in Gaza are martyred by this administration.”
He condemned the “savages” for bombing private media facilities, reflecting the administration’s “frustration about the truth” and pointed out that it failed attempts to break the unity of its people.
Ambassadors from Asia, Africa and Latin America observed burning news on fire and twisted broadcast equipment, detailing the global significance of the attack.
“The crime promoted international public support for Iran,” he noted, vowing to pursue legal accountability through international channels. “Media freedom is a common cause of humanity and exposes these crimes in all forums.”
The ambassador observed where Emmami resumed broadcasting minutes after the strike.
“The broadcast continued because we couldn’t silence the truth,” Emami said as she stood in front of a partially collapsed studio wall. “We have told the world that aggression cannot quell the voices of resistance.”
Jebelli highlighted the paradoxical consequences of the attack. “We have revealed the unity of our nation, rather than shattering morale.”
The attack on the Israeli regime’s IRIB headquarters and its subversion and suppression of truth through violence reflect previous actions.
This is evident in Israel’s wider oppression of Palestinian media, highlighted by the destruction of more than 50 media offices in Gaza since October 2023.
The ongoing conflict has become the most deadly time for media workers on record. At least 186 journalists have been murdered, according to the committee protecting Journalists (CPJ) data. These incredible two-thirds were Palestinians, and were intentionally killed by the Israeli forces in Gaza.
The cold recent example unfolded on April 7th, when Israeli forces burned journalist Hilmi al-Faqawi and lived on a targeted missile strike in a media tent outside Khan Yunis’ Nasser Hospital.
A fellow journalist Abed Schaart described his colleagues being held back on the burning legs when his pants were torn apart.