Putin urges restraint in call with Iran's Raisi

Russian President Vladimir Putin warned that further escalation in the Middle East could have "catastrophic consequences," during a phone call with his Iranian counterpart Ebrahim Raisi, the Kremlin said Tuesday.

"Vladimir Putin expressed hope that all sides would show reasonable restraint and prevent a new round of confrontation fraught with catastrophic consequences for the entire region," the Kremlin said in a readout of the call.

The situation in the Middle East grew even tenser over the weekend when Iran and its allies launched a barrage of over 300 missiles, drones and rockets at Israel.

Tehran said it was an act of self-defence in retaliation for a deadly Israeli air strike on its consulate in Syria.

Moscow and Iran are close military and political allies and the Kremlin said the call was held at the request of the Iranian side.

"The escalating situation in the Middle East following the Israeli airstrike on the Iranian diplomatic mission in Damascus and the retaliatory measures taken by Iran were discussed in detail," it added.