….We’ll hit back harder than ever, Trump responds
Iranian state media has vowed retribution against the United States following the killing of the country’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, in joint US-Israel airstrikes.
“A revenge is coming. A revenge is coming soon. They will see what they have done,” Iranian state news channel, Press TV, declared in the aftermath of Khamenei’s death.
PressTV anchor, Maryam Azarchehr, wept during the live broadcast as she delivered the news.
“Today, those mourning him will be the orphans across the world, as the orphans once mourned Imam Ali, peace be upon him,” she said.
“Today the devils of the world will celebrate — and everybody they have managed to brainwash.”
Azarchehr warned, “This is not over. Trump is going to pay a price — a price paid by no American president at any time, paid by no Zionist, paid by no criminal of all time.
“Revenge is coming soon. It is coming after Trump and after everybody who facilitated this assassination. He will pay the ultimate price.”
Responding via Truth Social, President Donald Trump wrote: “Iran just stated that they are going to hit very hard today, harder than they have ever hit before. They better not do that, however, because if they do, we will hit them with a force that has never been seen before! Thank you for your attention to this matter!”
Meanwhile, the Iranian leadership has declared 40 days of national mourning, according to Iran’s state television following the death of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
He was killed as a “martyr,” the IRNA and Fars news agencies reported.
Earlier, U.S. President Donald Trump had declared Khamenei dead after the United States and Israel launched wide-ranging strikes on Iran on Saturday.
“Khamenei, one of the most evil people in history, is dead,” Trump wrote on Truth Social, adding: “This is the single greatest chance for the Iranian people to take back their country.”
The religious leader had a key role in shaping Iran’s domestic and foreign policy over the last decades, developing the Islamic Republic into a powerful regional player.
Saturday’s attacks targeted key locations where the Iranian leadership was meeting, killing top officials including the defense minister and the head of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, the Israeli military said earlier.
The assault, which killed more than 200 people according to the Red Crescent, triggered retaliatory strikes at Israel and US military forces based in the Middle East.
Iran’s Supreme National Security Council said in a statement the “martyrdom of Imam Ali Khamenei will mark the beginning of a great uprising against the tyrants of the world.”
The council was set up in August to centralize military strategy following the 12-day war in which Israel and the US attacked Iran.
Earlier, reports that Khamenei had died sparked spontaneous celebrations in Tehran.
People in the Iranian capital were reported to have shouted with joy from their windows as news circulated via Iranian exile media that can be received in the country by satellite.
