IRAN’S newly installed Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei has declared that the Strait of Hormuz must remain closed in response to the United States–Israel military attacks that triggered the current war on Feb 28.
In his first public statement since assuming the country’s highest leadership position earlier this week, Khamenei said Iran would continue its resistance against its adversaries following the killing of his father, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, in the joint strike.
“What the people want is to continue an effective defence and bring regret to the enemy,” Khamenei said, according to Iranian state-run media. The remarks were reported by Anadolu Ajansi citing Iranian state media.
Mojtaba Khamenei was appointed Supreme Leader after his father was killed in the US–Israel attacks that struck Iran on Feb 28, an escalation that has plunged West Asia into a widening conflict.
Khamenei also indicated that Tehran was weighing the possibility of opening additional fronts as part of its broader strategy in the war.
He said such options would be considered against adversaries “who have very little experience and would be in an extremely vulnerable position.”
According to him, the potential new front could be activated “if the war situation continues and in line with considerations of national interest,” while he also called for participation in Quds Day observances, where “the spirit of resistance against the enemy must be emphasised.”
He further vowed that Tehran would avenge the deaths of Iranians killed in the escalating conflict, declaring that the country would “seek justice for the bloodshed of the Iranian people.”
The region has been gripped by intensifying instability since the United States and Israel launched coordinated strikes on Iran on Feb 28.
Well over 2,000 people have been reported killed so far, including the then Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and more than 150 school students, while over 10,000 others have been injured in the US–Israel attacks.
Tehran has since retaliated with drone and missile strikes targeting Israel as well as Jordan, Iraq and several Gulf states hosting US military assets.
At least eight US soldiers have been reported killed since the conflict began. - March 13, 2026
