Jakarta, Indonesia Sentinel — Iran Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei delivered his first public remarks on Friday following the ceasefire agreement between Iran and Israel, declaring what he called a “victory” over the “Zionist regime.”
Speaking on state television, Khamenei claimed Israel had been “crushed” under Iranian attacks and dismissed the idea that such a blow from Tehran had ever seemed possible to its adversaries.
“The idea that Iran could strike them this way never crossed their minds, but that is exactly what happened,” Khamenei said, on his official website.
Khamenei also extended his praise and gratitude to Iran’s armed forces and military leadership for what he described as a successful campaign. He went further, asserting that Iran had also triumphed over the United States, which had entered the conflict to support Israel.
“The U.S. regime entered the war directly because they feared the Zionist regime would be completely destroyed,” he said. “They intervened to save it, and yet achieved nothing.”
The Supreme Leader dismissed the U.S. strikes on three Iranian nuclear facilities as ineffective, claiming they failed to inflict any meaningful damage and would instead backfire diplomatically.
“The U.S. president used bizarre and exaggerated language to describe the events. Clearly, he needed to exaggerate, because anyone listening could see through it, they achieved nothing,” Khamenei said.
“They failed to meet their objectives and resorted to hyperbole to cover up the truth,” he added.
Khamenei claimed that Iran’s retaliatory strike on the U.S. Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar caused significant damage—damage he alleged the United States concealed to mask what he described as a strategic failure.
“The fact that Iran has access to key U.S. facilities in the region and can take action when necessary is highly significant,” Khamenei said. “Such actions could happen again in the future. If aggression continues, the aggressor will pay a heavy price.”
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Khamenei also expressed gratitude to the Iranian people for their unity and unwavering support of the country’s military. He claimed that Iran has achieved victory and emphasized that the country would never submit to foreign pressure.
“Anyone who expects Iran to bow down to another nation is speaking nonsense, nonsense that will be laughed at by the wise and informed,” he said. “The Iranian nation is proud and will remain so.”
The remarks marked Khamenei’s first public statement following the ceasefire agreement between Iran and Israel, which went into effect on Tuesday, June 24.
The truce came after Iran launched a retaliatory strike on the U.S. military base in Qatar, in response to Washington’s earlier attack on three key Iranian nuclear facilities on June 22. Iran had previously warned that it would respond forcefully to any country intervening in the conflict or siding with Israel.
(Raidi/Agung)
