TEHRAN- Iran’s Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian has urged Italy to work toward putting an end to Israel’s war crimes and genocide in the Gaza Strip and the occupied West Bank.

Amir Abdollahian said as much over the phone with Antonio Tajani, the Italian Minister of Foreign Affairs, on Friday. 

According to the senior Iranian official, Tehran has always contributed positively to regional advancements while also bearing a heavy financial burden for the sake of peace and security in the region. 

Amir Abdollahian further stated that Tehran is willing to strengthen its ties with Rome because of their shared past. 

Regarding the anticipated reaction to Israel’s terrorist attack on the Iranian embassy in the Syrian capital of Damascus earlier this month, Tajani, for his part, urged Iran to exercise moderation. He asked Amir Abdollahian as well, “for moderation.”

“We cannot risk escalation at such an extremely volatile stage. All regional actors must show responsibility,” the top Italian diplomat said.

In a statement, the Iranian Foreign Ministry also quoted Tajani as stating that Italy and the European Union denounced Israel’s attack on Iran’s diplomatic facility in Damascus. 

Tajani agreed that there should be no attacks against diplomatic locations. 

The senior Italian diplomat emphasized the need of maintaining Red Sea maritime security and urged Iran to keep up its constructive role in easing tensions and advancing sustainable peace in the region. 

Tajani’s appeal was made in the midst of worries that Tehran would strike back following the April 1 Israeli missile attack on the Iranian embassy in Damascus, which resulted in the deaths of five people, including Brigadier General Mohammad Reza Zahedi, the senior commander of Iran’s Quds Force, and his deputy, General Mohammad Hadi Haji Rahimi. 

Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei declared that the Israeli regime “must be punished and will be punished” for its murderous attack on the Iranian diplomatic grounds during a speech in Tehran on Wednesday following the Eid al-Fitr prayers. 

Ayatollah Khamenei added, “The evil Zionist regime committed another mistake ...  and that was the attack on the Iranian consulate in Syria. The consulate and diplomatic missions in any country are considered to be the territory of that country. When they attack our consulate, it means they have attacked our soil.”

Despite the West’s lack of condemnation of Israel and its efforts to dissuade Tehran from retaliating, it has become evident that Iran’s response is on the way. Some reports suggest the country could directly strike the occupied territories within the next 24 to 48 hours, with a range of advanced drones and missiles.

The growing calls for an immediate ceasefire in the Gaza Strip come as more than six months of brutal Israeli aggression has killed at least 33,634 Palestinians, mostly women and children, and injured 76,214 others.

Israel launched the onslaught on October 7 after the Hamas resistance group carried out Operation Al-Aqsas Storm against the usurping entity in retaliation for its intensified atrocities against the Palestinian people.