Tehran, IRNA – A massive funeral procession is underway in the Iranian capital for Secretary of Supreme National Security Council Ali Larijani, Commander of Basij Volunteer Force Major General Gholam Reza Soleimani, and dozens of Navy servicemen martyred in the ongoing US-Israeli war of aggression.
Thousands of people from all walks of life and officials, amidst sorrow and grief, filled Tehran’s iconic Revolution Square on Wednesday afternoon to bid farewell to the martyrs of unprovoked US and Israeli attacks.
Larijani was martyred along with his son in an Israeli terrorist airstrike in Tehran on Tuesday. Major General Soleimani, was also martyred in a separate attack by Israeli warplanes the same day.
This is yet another historic gathering in a nation that has been restless since the beginning of the US-Israeli imposed war and the martyrdom of Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei and hundreds of citizens in the indiscriminate missile and drone attacks by the enemies.
The event also included the funeral of dozens of Iranian Navy sailors from the Dena destroyer, which was hit by an MK‑48 torpedo from a US submarine off the coast of Galle, Sri Lanka. The Iranian destroyer was returning after participating in a naval drill in India to which Iran had been officially invited.
The US and the Israeli regime launched a large-scale unprovoked military aggression against Iran following the assassination of Ayatollah Khamenei, along with several senior military commanders and civilians on February 28.
The attacks involved extensive aerial strikes on both military and civilian locations across Iran, causing a trail of deaths and destruction.
In response, the Iranian Armed Forces have carried out retaliatory operations, targeting American and Israeli positions in the occupied territories and at regional bases with waves of missiles and drones.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has confirmed that Israel killed Intelligence Minister Esmail Khatib in an overnight attack, marking the third assassination of a high-ranking Iranian official in two days.
The announcement on Wednesday comes hours after Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz claimed the Iranian minister had been killed.
Katz also announced that he and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had given the Israeli military standing authorisation to eliminate other senior Iranian officials in their sights without case-by-case approval.
“This is seen as another success from the Israeli perspective in targeting the Iranian leadership,” she said.
President Pezeshkian condoles martyrdom of minster of intelligencePresident Masoud Pezeshkian has expressed condolences over the martyrdom of Esmail Khatib, Minister of Intelligence.
In a post shared on X on Wednesday, President Pezeshkian said: “I condole the martyrdom of the two cabinet members and secretary of the Supreme National Security Council and some of the military commanders to the great nation of Iran.
“We are all bereaved over martyrdom of Esmail Khatib, Minister of Intelligence, Aziz Nasirzadeh Minister of Defense and Ali Larijani secretary of the Supreme National Security Council.”
Iran warns indifference to Israeli crimes will push world toward chaos
Iran’s Foreign Ministry has warned that indifference to the crimes of the Israeli regime will push the world and human civilization toward the edge of an immoral abyss and chaos.
In a statement on Wednesday, the Foreign Ministry expressed condolences over the martyrdom of Ali Larijani , the secretary of the Supreme National Security Council, and his companions in US-Israeli assaults.
“Without a doubt, such terrorist actions will not only create any disruption in the firm will of the Iranian people to defend national security and interests, but will greatly strengthen national unity, firm resolve, and steadfastness of the people and officials of the Islamic Republic of Iran in defending the country’s sovereignty,” the ministry added.
The Foreign Ministry strongly condemned this heinous crime, calling on the United Nations, its Security Council, and the Secretary-General to take responsible and decisive action against the ongoing military aggression of the Zionist regime and the United States, and the heinous crimes committed by them against the Iranian people.
It warned that indifference to the crimes of the occupying regime ruling over occupied Palestine, including killings, terrorism, genocide, and other heinous crimes, will push the world and human civilization toward the edge of an immoral abyss and chaos, with consequences affecting all countries and every individual.
Araghchi says Iran rejects a ceasefire, rather seeks an end to war
Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi says Iran does not seek a ceasefire agreement and rather seeks the end of war which he said would be the end of war in all fronts.
“We don’t believe in ceasefire. We believe in the end of war; the end of war exactly means the end of war in all fronts,” Araghchi said in an exclusive interview with Al Jazeera on Wednesday, noting that the end of war in the whole region – Lebanon, Yemen, Iraq, Iran and other regional countries – would lead to a lasting solution to conflicts throughout the region.
“I believe that peace in the region must be inclusive, accurate and including all the countries,” he stressed.
On the spread of war to other regional countries, he said, “when the United States attacks us, our missiles and drones cannot reach the American soil and we are therefore forced to respond by targeting US military bases and assets in the region which are unfortunately located across the region within the territory of our friendly countries.”
He reiterated that Iran had not hit civilian targets in the neighboring countries while acknowledging that in some cases some unintentional damages may have been caused, but stressed that Iran did not intend to do so.
Araghchi also referred to a message by President Masoud Pezeshkian in which he apologized the regional countries for the damages to inflicted by them, and said that apologizing is a sign of strength and honor in Iran and the message by the president was issued out of respect for the hardship faced by regional countries.
He said that Leader of that Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Mojtaba Khamenei is in full health.
The minister concluded by saying that this was the US war and finally it is the US that has to be held accountable in front of its own people, the Iranian nation, the people of the region and even the future.
