Israel’s military struck entrances to the detention facility in Tehran, where dissidents and political prisoners are held. Human rights groups say the prison is a symbol of repression.

Built in 1971, the Evin Prison was used by the Shah regime to detain thousands of political prisoners in horrifying conditions.

Israel targeted Evin prison in Tehran on Monday, one of the most potent symbols of Iran's governing system, in what Israel called the most intense bombing yet of the Iranian capital, a day after the United States joined the war by blasting nuclear sites.