Iran on Tuesday warned that it will attack 18 US tech firms, including Apple, Google, Meta, Tesla and Microsoft, on April 1 for “assisting US and Israeli terror operations” inside the Islamic Republic, reported Iranian state media.
The Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) said that the attacks will start at 8 pm on April 1, urging employees of these companies and residents within one kilometre radious of their offices to evacuate.
The Iranian list of targets also included HP, Intel, IBM, Cisco, Nvidia, Oracle, JP Morgan, and Boeing offices in the Gulf region.
According to the IRGC, these companies are “espionage entities associated with the warmongering government of the United States.” The IRGC claimed that the these firms provided artificial intelligence (AI) and internet communication technology (ICT) services to the US and Israel to design their operations and trace assassination targets inside Iran.
Iran said that the US and Israel had ignored Tehran’s warning against targeted assassinations of its political leaders and military officials and carried out new attacks on Tuesday.
“In response to this terrorist operation, henceforth, the main institutions involved in terrorist activities will be considered legitimate targets,” the IRGC said.
“We advise employees of these institutions to immediately leave their workplaces to protect their lives. Residents within a one-kilometer radius of these terrorist companies across all countries in the region are also urged to evacuate and move to safe locations,” it added.