The President of the United States, Donald Trump, warned Iran against escalating its attacks in a post on Truth Social, after Tehran issued threats following the acknowledgment of the killing of the Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei.
“Iran just stated that it will strike very hard today, harder than ever before,” Trump wrote.
His comments came as tensions continued to rise following coordinated U.S.-Israeli strikes against Iran, euronews writes.
The Speaker of the Iranian Parliament, Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, warned the United States and Israel that they would face “devastating blows” due to the ongoing attacks against the Islamic Republic.
“You have crossed our red line and you must pay the price,” Qalibaf said in a televised address, becoming the highest-ranking Iranian official to appear publicly since the beginning of the strikes.
“We will deliver blows so devastating that you yourselves will be forced to beg,” he added.
It is reported that Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei, was killed in a large-scale attack on Iran carried out by Israel and the United States, casting uncertainty over the future of the Islamic Republic and heightening fears of regional instability.
Iranian state television and the Islamic Republic News Agency reported the death of the 86-year-old early this morning.
Trump had announced this several hours earlier, saying he was giving Iranians “the greatest chance” to “take back” their country.
The announcements followed a coordinated U.S.-Israeli air campaign targeting Iranian military and government facilities.
According to Trump, the “heavy and precise bombings” would continue throughout the week or for as long as necessary.
The strikes marked a dramatic escalation of U.S. involvement in Iran, representing the second time in eight months that the Trump administration has launched attacks during negotiations over Tehran’s nuclear program.
- Khamenei’s death after decades in power is widely expected to leave a significant leadership vacuum, given the lack of a publicly identified successor and the Supreme Leader’s ultimate authority over key state decisions.