Khamenei pledges ‘firm retaliatory response’ to US, Israel

Tehran: Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said any attack by the US or Israel would be met with “a firm retaliatory strike,” after US President Donald Trump threatened to bomb Iran unless it signs a deal renouncing nuclear weapons.

Still, in the televised remarks on Monday, Khamenei downplayed the likelihood of such an outcome, characterizing it as “highly unlikely.”

His remarks follow a period of heightened tensions between Tehran and Washington. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said last week that there would be no direct negotiations with the US as long as the Trump administration maintains its “military threats.” In an interview with NBC News over the weekend, Trump said “if they don’t make a deal, there will be bombing.”

Bloomberg previously reported that Trump had set a two-month deadline for Iran to negotiate a new deal or risk military consequences. In 2018, Trump pulled the US out of the original accord, which had imposed restrictions on Iran’s nuclear programme in exchange for sanctions relief. Since then, Iran has been building its inventory of uranium enriched just below weapons grade.

Since the start of his second term, Trump has revived his so-called “maximum pressure” strategy, vowing to stop Iran from developing a nuclear bomb. Tehran says its nuclear programme is only for peaceful purposes.