"The aggressors calculated and planned to weaken the establishment in Iran by targeting key figures and sensitive facilities," Iran's supreme leader Ali Khamenei said today in a statement posted on his website, referring to the 12-day air campaign Israel launched last month.
Israel launched Operation Roaring Lion on 13/6, striking key targets in Iran and killing several high-ranking officers and a top nuclear scientist.
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Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei in Tehran on 16/7. Photo: AFP |
Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei in Tehran on 16/7. Photo: AFP
"Their goal was to incite unrest and push people into the streets to overthrow the regime," Khamenei said.
Iran launched Operation True Promise 3 in retaliation, firing multiple unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and missiles at Israeli territory.
The US deployed B-2 bombers and warships to attack Iran's Natanz, Fordow, and Isfahan nuclear facilities on 22/6. Tehran retaliated by firing missiles at the US Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar, destroying a radar dome. Two days later, the Iran-Israel conflict ended with a US-brokered ceasefire.
The 12 days of fighting left more than 900 people dead and over 4,700 injured in Iran, and 28 dead and over 2,500 injured in Israel.
"If the enemy continues its aggression, Iran's response will be even stronger than the blow they suffered during the 12-day war," the supreme leader declared.
Regarding Iran's missile attack on the US Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar last month, Khamenei said it was "an extremely sensitive US regional base". "The fact that our country is ready to confront the power of the US and Israel is very commendable," he said.
During the fighting, the supreme leader was reportedly in a safe location. In a speech a few days after the ceasefire took effect, Khamenei declared that Iran had defeated both Israel and the US. He also asserted that Iran would not surrender to the US.
Nuclear talks between the US and Iran have been stalled since the fighting broke out. Iran has reaffirmed that the possibility of diplomacy remains open, provided the US commits to no military action against Tehran. Iran's parliament rejected the possibility of negotiations on 16/7 if the US does not meet certain "preconditions", but did not specify what those conditions are.
Huyen Le (AFP, Reuters, Newsweek)