The headquarters of the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB) in Tehran was attacked by Israel this Monday in the middle of a live broadcast.

Images spread on social media show the moment the channel's presenter interrupts his speech after a loud explosion was heard.

Iranian authorities reported that several of the network's employees had been killed in the attack. Images from Tehran showed one of IRIB's buildings in flames.

Minutes after the attack, the network resumed broadcasting.

Peyman Jebeli, the station's director, appeared on state television displaying a blood-stained newspaper. I have stated that state television and its employees will hold out until the end.

Before the attack, the Israeli military had issued an urgent evacuation order for Tehran's third district in the northeast of the city, which houses the public broadcaster's headquarters and is home to more than 300,000 people.

"The Iranian megaphone of propaganda and incitement is about to disappear. The evacuation of nearby residents has begun," Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz had said.

After the attack, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said in a statement that the air force targeted a communications center used for military purposes by the Iranian armed forces.

They added that the building was being used under the guise of a civilian activity and that the attack directly harmed the Iranian military's military capabilities.

More than 200 dead

On Friday, the Israeli government launched Operation Rising Lion, which has been attacking Iranian nuclear facilities and other military targets. The IDF justified the start of the offensive by the “continued aggression of the regime” in Tehran. The operation has killed key figures in Iran's armed forces and prominent scientists in its nuclear program.

Meanwhile, Iran began firing dozens of ballistic missiles toward Israel on Friday night, some of which penetrated the Iron Dome air defense system.

Iran's Health Ministry reported that more than 200 people have died as a result of the Israeli attacks, 90% of them civilians.

Meanwhile, the death toll in Israel has risen to 24, according to the prime minister's office.