Iran’s new supreme leader and Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s hardline son Mojtaba Khamenei issued his first message on Thursday saying that the Strait of Hormuz should stay closed and use as leverage against the enemy as a tool of pressure.
He also warned Iran’s Gulf neighbours to shut all US bases and said that attack on those bases will continue. He also clarified that Iran is only attacks US bases in the West Asia region and said that protection promised by the US is “nothing more than a lie.”
Khamenei’s first message came through a news anchor on state television as he did not appear on camera. According to an Israeli assessment, he is probably injured due to attacks in the opening days of the war, reported news agency Associated Press.
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‘Will avenge martyrs’
The new Iranian Supreme Leader also vowed to avenge the killings of “martyrs” including the children killed in the attack on Iran’s Minab school on the first day of the war.
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Refusing to give any sign of de-escalation in the ongoing war, Mojtaba said that Iran would “obtain compensation” from its enemy. He said that either Iran will “take from its assets” or inflict damage of same extent on them.
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He also thanked “resistance front” in Yemen, Lebanon, Iraq and said that Iran’s priority is vengeance “until fully achieved”.
Mojtaba’s remarks come as the war between Iran and the United States, Israel is just two days away from the two-week mark and has led to a global energy fuel crisis due to the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz. The Hormuz runs past Iran’s coast and is responsible for the supply of one-fifth of the world’s oil.
(With input from wires)
