Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei has vowed to permanently silence “world bully” Israel following the deaths of senior commanders during Israeli strikes on Thursday.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) targeted dozens of sites across Iran, including military bases and a nuclear enrichment facility in Natanz.
In a statement on Friday morning, Khamenei warned that Israel “should expect severe punishment.” He accused the IDF of striking residential areas.
Rt.com reports: The General Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces described the attack as “blatant aggression” and vowed a “crushing” response.
According to Iranian media, the victims include Hossein Salami, the commander of Iran’s elite Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), Deputy Chief of Army Staff Gholam Ali Rashid, and nuclear scientists Mohammad Mehdi Tehranchi and Fereydoon Abbasi.
The attack took place just days before the sixth round of nuclear talks between the US and Iran, scheduled for Sunday in Oman. US President Donald Trump recently accused Tehran of “slow-walking” the negotiations after previous rounds failed to produce a breakthrough. On Friday, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio stressed that Washington was not involved in the Israeli strikes.
Iran has denied that it is seeking to acquire nuclear weapons, insisting instead on its right to conduct nuclear research for civilian purposes.