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Iranian Parliamentary Speaker, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, has published a message marking 30 days since the start of the US-Israeli war on Iran.
The war kicked off 28 February this year with the first US/Israel airstrikes instantly killing Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, and over 40 top military and civil leaders who were meeting in his well-fortified presidential palace in Tehran. Khamenei has since been replaced by his son, Mojtaba Khamenei.
Iranian forces “are waiting for the arrival of American troops on the ground to set them on fire and punish their regional partners forever,” Ghalibaf said.
He added: “Our firing continues. Our missiles are in place. Our determination and faith have increased.”
The comments came as the Saudi Arabian Foreign Minister, Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud, is set to join his Egyptian, Pakistani and Turkish counterparts in Islamabad,the Pakistani capital, later today for talks aimed at reducing regional tensions.
Despite such diplomatic efforts, the Pentagon is preparing for weeks of “ground operations” in Iran, US officials have told the Washington Post, as thousands of US soldiers and marines arrive in the Middle East.
Ghalibaf added: “The enemy openly sends a message of negotiation and secretly plans a ground attack.”
Ghalibaf, who has served as Speaker of the Parliament since 2020, wrote in his message carried by the Tasnim news agency.
“The United States expresses its desires with a list of 15 points and pursues what it did not achieve in the war.
“We are in a major world war, and we must prepare ourselves for the tortuous and difficult path ahead of us until we reach the summit,” he added.
Ghalibaf was previously an Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Commander, Police chief and Mayor of Tehran.
Washington reportedly has thought of him as a potential partner and he is reported to be Donald Trump’s preferred choice for leader.
*PHOTO CAPTION: Ghalibaf.
