TEHRAN: Iranian top officials vowed on Sunday to avenge their slain supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and declared a new wave of strikes on US bases in the Gulf, defying US President Donald Trump's threat of an unprecedented escalation in force. As crowds gathered in Tehran, explosions rang out and the Israeli military announced that it was again striking targets in the heart of the city — as more blasts were heard in Jerusalem, Riyadh, Dubai, Doha and Manama.
Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian declared Khamenei's killing a "declaration of war against Muslims" and warned: "Iran considers it its legitimate duty and right to avenge the perpetrators and masterminds of this historic crime." Ali Larijani, the powerful head of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, declared: "The brave soldiers and the great nation of Iran will teach an unforgettable lesson to the international oppressors."
In a social media post that adopted Trump's style and rhetoric, he warned: "YESTERDAY IRAN FIRED MISSILES AT THE UNITED STATES AND ISRAEL, AND THEY DID HURT. TODAY WE WILL HIT THEM WITH A FORCE THAT THEY HAVE NEVER EXPERIENCED BEFORE." Meanwhile, blasts were heard in northern Tehran and smoke was seen emanating from a building, an AFP journalist reported. It was not immediately clear what the target was.
As crowds demanded revenge — and Iran's army announced strikes targeting US bases in the Gulf and Iraqi Kurdistan — Trump threatened to unleash "force that has never been seen before" and urged Iran's people to rise up and seize power. Outrage at Saturday's wave of US and Israeli strikes against Iran, which killed 86-year old Khamanei and some other senior figures, spilled over into neighbouring Iraq and Pakistan, where crowds attempted to storm US diplomatic missions.
In the Pakistani megacity of Karachi, at least eight people were killed during pro-Iran protests at the US consulate, according to Muhammad Amin, a spokesman for the Edhi Foundation rescue service, who added that most had bullet wounds.
In Iran, the Red Crescent said strikes had left 201 people dead and injured hundreds more. Iran's judiciary confirmed that Ali Shamkhani, a top adviser to Khamenei, and the head of Iran's powerful Revolutionary Guards, General Mohammad Pakpour, were both killed. Iran responded to the strikes with a flurry of missile and drone strikes across the Middle East, killing at least two people in Abu Dhabi and another in Tel Aviv, before following up with a new wave after state media confirmed Khamenei's death.
Iran had already seen intense speculation on a successor to Khamenei, given his age. Upon his death, many observers expected greater power for the Revolutionary Guards, which are deeply entrenched in the Iranian economy. Pezeshkian and two other top officials would lead Iran in the transitional period following Khamenei's death, state television said on Sunday. The Iranian judiciary said one strike that hit a school in the south on Saturday killed 108 people.
Iran began 40 days of mourning on Sunday for its slain supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and declared a new wave of strikes on US bases in the Gulf, despite US President Donald Trump threatening an unprecedented escalation in force. Even as crowds gathered in Tehran, explosions rang out and the Israeli military announced that it was again striking targets in the heart of the city. The blasts were heard in northern Tehran and smoke was seen emanating from a building. It was not immediately clear what the target was.
Despite the US leader's stark warning, more explosions were heard in Jerusalem, Dubai, Doha and Manama as Israeli and Gulf air defence systems battled a renewed wave of Iranian missiles and drones.
Iran's first retaliatory strikes on Saturday had hit all the Gulf states apart from Oman, which had tried to be a mediator in US-Iran talks, but on Sunday the country's commercial port of Duqm was hit by two drones, injuring a foreign worker, the Oman News Agency said.
Outrage at Saturday's wave of US and Israel strikes against Iran, which killed 86-year old Khamanei and some other senior figures, also spilled over into neighbouring Iraq and Pakistan, where crowds attempted to storm US diplomatic facilities. Iran had already seen intense speculation on a successor to Khamenei, given his age. Upon his death, many observers expected greater power for the Revolutionary Guards, which are deeply entrenched in the Iranian economy.
Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Syria, the UAE and Israel all closed their airspaces to civilian traffic, at least in part, and multiple airlines cancelled flights to the Middle East. Trump's envoys had negotiated in Geneva on Thursday with Iran's foreign minister. Trump said that Iran's leaders had not compromised sufficiently on its disputed nuclear programme, although he made clear after the attack that the goal was regime change and not a nuclear deal.
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