Iranian supreme leader says US strikes on nuclear sites ‘did nothing significant’ in first comments since a ceasefire was agreed with Israel.
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has said Iran will “never surrender” to the United States, striking a defiant tone in his first remarks since a ceasefire with Israel took hold.
“The American president indicated in one of his statements that Iran must surrender. Surrender! It is no longer a question of enrichment, nor of the nuclear industry, but of the surrender of Iran,” said Khamenei in a statement and televised speech carried by state media on Thursday. “Such an event (surrender) will never happen. It will never happen.”
Khamenei’s remarks come two days after a ceasefire halted a 12-day war between Iran and Israel – the foes’ deadliest and most destructive confrontation – and mark his first public appearance since June 19.
The speech also comes amid conflicting accounts in the US over the extent of the damage inflicted by US strikes on key Iranian nuclear sites at Fordow, Natanz and Isfahan during the conflict. US President Donald Trump said the strikes “obliterated” the nuclear facilities.
