Iran’s new supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, has released his first message since his appointment on Sunday. The message was read on Iranian state TV, providing the first public communication from the country’s highest office.
Injuries during recent bombardment
Mojtaba Khamenei has not appeared in public in the days following his appointment. Sources told CNN that he suffered a fractured foot and minor injuries during the first day of US and Israeli airstrikes. The attack also killed his father, the late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, along with five other family members, according to Iran’s ambassador to Cyprus, Alireza Salarian.
Handwritten message revealed on Telegram
A new image posted on Mojtaba Khamenei’s official Telegram channel shows his handwriting. The message begins with: “In the name of God, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.”
List of Iran’s supreme leaders
The image also lists the names of Iran’s supreme leaders: Mojtaba Khamenei, his father Ali Khamenei, and Ruhollah Khomeini, the first man to hold the role. The opening phrase signals new beginnings and is commonly used at the start of Quranic chapters.
Message on state TV
The message from Iran’s new leader Mojtaba Khamenei is being read by a presenter on Iranian state TV. In comments translated by BBC Persian, Khamenei says that the “lever of blocking the Strait of Hormuz” should still be used by Iran.
He then says that Iran has a policy of “friendship” with neighbouring countries, but advised them to close American bases, which he says Iran will continue to target.
He says Iran will not hesitate to “avenge the blood of Iranians” who have been killed. He says this is especially true in the case in Minab, where a US strike near a school killed 168 people, including around 110 children. Iran says the school was hit by a US missile. US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth told the BBC’s Tom Bateman last week that they are investigating.
Source: CNN/BBC
Also read: Putin praises M. Khamenei, pledges Moscow’s full support for Tehran
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