Free Republic

DAMASCUS, April 1 (Reuters) - Iran's consulate in the Syrian capital Damascus was flattened on Monday in what Syrian and Iranian media described as an Israeli air strike, a startling apparent escalation of conflict in the Middle East that would pit Israel against Iran and its allies. A Lebanese security source, speaking to Reuters, said one of the dead was Mohammad Reza Zahedi, a senior commander in Iran's Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC). Iranian state television said several Iranian diplomats had been killed. Reuters reporters at the scene in the Mezzeh district of the Syrian capital saw smoke rising from rubble...

Anti-government protesters in Iraq burned down an IranianConsulate Wednesday, as unrest continues to grow against Iraqi lawmakers and Tehran's growing influence in Iraqi affairs. The consulate building in Najaf was torched and the Iranian flag was removed and replaced with an Iraqi one. Staffers inside were not harmed and escaped through a back door. One protester was killed and 35 were wounded when police opened fire to prevent them from entering the facility. Protesters previously attacked an Iranian consulate in Karbala earlier this month. No one was harmed in that attack.

US forces storm Iranian consulate Thursday, 11 January 2007 US forces have stormed an Iranian consulate in the northern Iraqi town of Irbil and seized five members of staff. The troops raided the building at about 0300 (0001GMT), taking away computers and papers, according to Kurdish media and senior local officials. The US military had no immediate comment on the raid, which comes amid high tension between Iran and the US. The Bush administration accuses Iran of helping fuel violence in Iraq, as well as trying to develop nuclear weapons. Iran strenuously denies both charges, countering that US military involvement...