Iraq’s top Shia cleric Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani warned against targeting Iran’s leadership and said that the Iran-Israel war could plunge the whole region into chaos, AFP reports.

Sistani said in a statement that any targeting of Iran’s “supreme religious and political leadership” would have “dire consequences on the region”.

He warned that it could spark “widespread chaos that would exacerbate the suffering of its (the region’s) people and severely harm everyone’s interests”.

Sistani urged the international community to “make every effort to end this unjust war and find a peaceful solution” to Iran’s nuclear programme.