Members of Iran’s Jewish community gathered at the Yusef Abad synagogue in central Tehran on Thursday, holding prayers and a ceremony as the war involving Iran continued. Inside the synagogue, congregants stood to sing Iran’s national anthem before listening to community leaders and speakers beneath images of the country’s revolutionary and religious figures. Community member Eli Yahu said the conflict should not be framed as a war against Jewish people, but a war between Iran and “Zionism and American imperialism”. Yahu added that Iran’s Jewish population had long-lived through conflict alongside other Iranians. According to a 2023 US State Department report, Iran’s Jewish population is estimated at around 9,000 people. Iranian Jewish community leader Younes Hamami Lalehzar said Judaism should not be used to justify violence, adding that the killing of civilians on either side was deeply upsetting. Reuters journalists were permitted by the Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance to film at these locations and were accompanied by officially approved guides/translators