Iran’s new Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei claimed a “final victory” in the war with the United States and Israel on April 10, in his first public statement since assuming the role after his father’s death.
Speaking at a ceremony marking 40 days since Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed in a US-Israeli airstrike on the first day of the war, the 58-year-old leader said Iran had “astonished the world.”
“We will certainly not leave the criminal aggressors who attacked our country unpunished,” he said in a statement read out on television — his first since the war began on February 28. He demanded compensation for “all damages, as well as the blood of the martyrs and the wounded.”
On the Strait of Hormuz — which Iran effectively blockaded during the conflict and which became the key sticking point in ceasefire negotiations — Khamenei said Tehran would move towards a “new phase” without elaborating.
Colombo commemoration
The 40-day commemoration for the late Ayatollah was also observed in Sri Lanka on April 9 at the Iranian Cultural Centre in Colombo, under the patronage of Iran’s Ambassador Alireza Delkosh. Several Sri Lankan political figures, including Wimal Weerawansa, attended the event.
Khamenei’s defiant tone comes as the two-week ceasefire brokered by Pakistan faces mounting pressure. Israel has continued strikes on Lebanon, and critical talks in Islamabad this weekend will determine whether the truce can be extended into a lasting peace. Oil prices remain elevated despite the controlled reopening of the Strait.
