Israel bombs Tehran synagogue, called 'collateral damage'

[Opinion. For a long time, since I became moved by this issue, I tried to understand, maybe even accept, Zionism. I understood its wish for a Jewish ‘homeland’.

But then I read more, esp transcripts from the 1897 World Zionist Convention. Right from that start, it wasn’t only about a ‘homeland’. It was about exiling the Arabs who already lived in the place Jews wanted for their own, a Jewish-Wholly Land.

So Zionism started as a racist effort and put that into practice with violence, right up to today.

Perhaps, perhaps, there can be a post-Zionist inclusivist Israel. But Israelis may be too hypermilitarised to live without war as their motivating factor. What else holds them together?

Which would mean they don’t deserve a ‘homeland.

Think about it. What other small religion demands their own country?

How about the 6 million Jains or the 190,000 Zoroastrians? Baha’i (9M), Daoism (8.7M), Confucianism (8.7M), Shinto (3M)?

Around one-quarter of Israeli Jews are considering leaving. The dream is fading.]

Tehran’s embattled Jewish community endures despite Israeli bombing of synagogue

Members of Rafi’ Nia synagogue braved airstrikes to celebrate Passover hours before it was destroyed

Mohammad Mohsenifar in Tehran and Stefanie Glinski

The Guardian: 22 Apr 2026

On the evening of 6 April, Asef, 65, and other members of Tehran’s Jewish community braved the US-Israeli bombing campaign to celebrate an evening Passover service at the Rafi’ Nia synagogue in the centre of the Iranian capital.

“We didn’t let the conflict stop us from celebrating,” he said, adding that the community had made an effort to hold on to their Passover traditions even amid the difficulties of war.

It was already dark when he headed home that night; the streets were quiet, with only a few people out.

By the time he got up the next morning to get ready for work, an Israeli airstrike had completely destroyed the synagogue.

The Israeli army described the destruction as “collateral damage” from a strike targeting a commander, but members of the Jewish community expressed anger and outrage. Nobody was injured, although a staff member had been in the synagogue’s office at the time.

“We condemn this attack. It disrespects our faith. Iran’s Jewish community doesn’t have good relations with the Zionist Israeli government,” he said.

Iran’s Jewish community is the largest and oldest in the Middle East outside Israel, dating back about 2,500 years to when Jews were exiled eastwards by Assyrian and Babylonian rulers.

The US-Israeli war on Iran has highlighted the unique dual identity of a community that has itself become collateral damage in a conflict that the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, asserts has been fought to protect Jews.

Today, the vibrant community maintains about 30 synagogues, as well as schools, kosher restaurants and supermarkets.

Judaism is constitutionally recognised and protected in Iran, although Jews are barred from holding certain high government or military positions.

About two decades ago, Israel encouraged Iranian Jews to emigrate, offering cash incentives in an attempt to prompt a mass migration.

At the time, the Society of Iranian Jews dismissed the offer as “immature political enticements” and said their national identity was not for sale.

Setareh, a 60-year-old woman and “proud Iranian”, said synagogues in Tehran were left without guards and “remain open throughout the day”, even during war.

“Muslim and Jewish communities live here together, we’re not separated. We all live together in peace,” said another man, Ayman, 35. “We are all Iranians and this is our home.”