The Israeli city of Bat Yam has launched a NIS 208 million (£49 million) lawsuit against Iran over the deadly missile barrage last year that killed nine people, injured nearly 180 others and caused widespread destruction.
Filed at the Tel Aviv District Court, the civil claim seeks compensation for damage to residential buildings and the wider municipality following an Iranian missile strike on June 15, 2025.
The attack struck an apartment building and became the deadliest single missile strike of the 12-Day War.
Among the nine people killed were five Ukrainian nationals, including seven-year-old Anastasia Buryk, who had travelled to Israel with her family seeking cancer treatment. Holocaust survivor Bella Ashkenazi was also among the victims.
Bat Yam mayor Tzvika Brot and representatives of Shurat HaDin – Israel Law Centre travelled to New York in an effort to formally serve Iranian officials with the legal documents.
In an operation reportedly months in preparation, Brot approached an Iranian diplomat near United Nations headquarters in Manhattan, identified himself and presented the lawsuit.
Footage of the encounter appears to show the diplomat attempting to walk away as the mayor followed him, declaring that he was officially serving the documents on behalf of the city.
The municipality said the operation involved tracking the movements of Iranian representatives at the UN to identify an opportunity to deliver the papers.
The lawsuit argues that Iran should not be protected by sovereign immunity, maintaining that the missile attack deliberately or indiscriminately targeted civilian population centres and caused substantial harm to Israeli residents.
According to the municipality, approximately 160 buildings were damaged, 22 of which required immediate demolition, leaving thousands of residents displaced.
תיעוד של צביקה ברוט ראש עיריית בת ים נותן לדיפלומט האירני את כתב התביעה בניו יורק. "פגעתם באזרחים בכוונה"https://t.co/2IIbEkNLxC pic.twitter.com/pF8gs6FjFm
— إليشع بن كيمون. Elisha Ben Kimon. אלישע בן קימון (@elishabenkimon) November 8, 2026
Shurat HaDin founder Nitsana Darshan-Leitner said: “The campaign against Iran does not end on the battlefield. It also extends to the courts, bank accounts, assets, and every financial resource of the Iranian regime.
“We will continue fighting on behalf of terror victims until we bring the ayatollahs’ regime to its knees financially.”
Iran has 60 days to respond to the claim. However, even if the municipality secures a favourable judgment, it is unclear how it will collect compensation from the Islamic Republic.
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