Iran's supreme leader says the Islamic Republic will protect its nuclear and missile capabilities as a national asset. Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei made the statement Thursday, likely drawing a hard line as U.S. President Donald Trump seeks a wider deal to cement the war's shaky three-week ceasefire. Khamenei also said Americans belong "at the bottom" of the Persian Gulf. His remarks come as Iran's oil industry is struggling under a U.S. Navy blockade and as the global economy feels the strain of Iran's chokehold on the Strait of Hormuz. World oil prices surged above $126 a barrel on Thursday. The Trump administration is trying to persuade other nations to help reopen the strait.
Israel says it has killed two senior Iranian security officials in a major blow to the country's leadership. Iran, which confirmed one killing, fired salvos of missiles and drones Tuesday at its Gulf Arab neighbors and Israel. Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz announced the deaths of Ali Larijani, the secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, and Gen. Gholam Reza Soleimani, the head of the Revolutionary Guard's all-volunteer Basij force. The Iranian judiciary's news agency, Mizan, confirmed the killing of Soleimani and did not confirm nor deny the death of Larijani. Larijani was considered one of the most powerful figures in the country since Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed on the first day of the war.
Oil prices surged and stock markets slid after hard-line Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei was chosen to succeed his late father as Iran's supreme leader. His appointment on Monday, and new strikes on regional oil infrastructure, signaled that Iran was digging in 10 days into the war launched by the United States and Israel. The war has choked off major supplies of oil and gas to world markets, led foreigners to flee from business hubs and prompted millions to seek shelter as bombs hit military bases, government buildings, oil and water installations, hotels and at least one school. Khamenei is a secretive 56-year-old cleric and only the third supreme leader in the history of the Islamic Republic.
Israel stepped up airstrikes on Iranian missile launchers and a nuclear research site, and Iran retaliated against Israel and across the Gulf region, disrupting energy supplies and travel. As explosions rang out in Tehran and in Lebanon — where Israel said it struck Hezbollah militants — the American embassy in Saudi Arabia came under drone attack. Four days into a war that President Donald Trump suggested would last several weeks but perhaps longer, hundreds of people have been killed in Iran, including people Trump said he had considered as possible future leaders of the country. As the conflict expanded across the region, the State Department said Tuesday it's preparing military and charter flights for Americans who want to leave the Middle East.
Iran's top prosecutor has called U.S. President Donald Trump's about halting the hangings of 800 detained protesters "completely false." Activists say Iran's crackdown has already killed at least 5,032 people. The internet blackout in Iran has lasted over two weeks, making it hard to confirm information. Meanwhile, tensions between the U.S. and Iran remain high as an American aircraft carrier group moves closer to the Middle East. Analysts say this could give Trump the option to carry out strikes, though he has avoided that so far despite warnings to Tehran.
Iran has warned Donald Trump not to take any action against the country's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, days after the U.S. president called for an end to Khamenei's near 40-year reign. "Trump knows that if any hand of aggression is extended toward our leader, we not only cut that hand but also we will set fire to their world," Gen. Abolfazl Shekarchi, a spokesman for Iran's armed forces, said Tuesday. Trump has drawn two red lines for the Islamic Republic — the killing of peaceful protesters and Tehran conducting mass executions in the wake of the demonstrations. Activists say at least 4,484 people were killed during the protests.
