US President Donald Trump has claimed that Iran has lost its top military leadership, its top commanders, in the US-Israeli strikes on the Islamic Republic. He further claimed that Mojtaba Khamenei, the son of the late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, is “90% gone”. “They have no navy, they have no air force, it’s all gone. Their anti-aircraft is gone, their leaders have all been killed, their best leaders have been killed,” Trump told Fox News in an interview on Monday.
Mojtaba was made Iran’s Supreme Leader after Ali Khamenei was killed in a joint strike by the United States and Israel on February 28; however, he has not appeared before the public even once since then, with people raising questions if he is alright or not.
‘Khomeini is gone’: Trump
Trumpโs recent statements coincided with an announcement that Washington intends to re-establish the maritime blockade on Iran and the vessels navigating the Strait of Hormuz. The move has triggered a sharp response from Tehran.ย In the interview, Trump said Iran’s top leaders had been killed. “Their best leaders have been killed. They’re gone. Khomeini is gone,” he said, appearing to confuse Ali Khamenei with the late Iranian revolutionary leader who died in 1989.
US launches fresh strikes on Iran
It is to be noted here that the US launched fresh strikes on Iran this morning, hours after President Trump said Washington is “reinstating” a blockade on Iran in the Strait of Hormuz. He also suggested the United States will charge other ships for safe passage, upending hundreds of years of American policy supporting freedom of navigation across the globe.
The US Central Command said its latest operation targeted Iranian coastal defence systems, missile sites, drone facilities and maritime assets. The strikes hit areas around Abu Musa, Bandar Abbas, Bushehr, Chahbahar, Jask and Konarak. One Indian crew member was also killed in the attack, while eight others were injured, including six Indians and two Ukrainians.ย
Iranโs response
Iran responded with attacks targeting Bahrain and two tankers associated with the United Arab Emirates travelling through the strait, killing one mariner and wounding eight others. The Emirates threatened to retaliate against Iran, potentially drawing the nation home to Abu Dhabi and Dubai back into fighting with Tehran.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) also claimed that it downed an American MQ-1 drone over the Strait of Hormuz, intensifying the ongoing military confrontation. According to Iran’s state broadcaster, the American drone had been downed over the strategic waterway. The report was subsequently carried by several other Iranian state media outlets.
(With inputs from ANI)
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