On Wednesday, the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, rejected President Donald Trump’s calls for unconditional surrender.
“It isn’t wise to tell the Iranian nation to surrender,” he posted to X. “What should the Iranian nation surrender to? We will never surrender in response to the attacks of anyone. This is the logic of the Iranian nation. This is the spirit of the Iranian nation.”
In another tweet, he criticized Trump for his “absurd rhetoric” and “demands that the Iranian people surrender to him,” adding that he should “make threats against those who are afraid of being threatened. The Iranian nation isn’t frightened by such threats.”
Khamenei’s tweets came after Trump demanded “unconditional surrender” on Tuesday, saying the United States knows “exactly” where Khamenei is hiding.
“We know exactly where the so-called ‘Supreme Leader’ is hiding,” the president posted. “He is an easy target, but is safe there — We are not going to take him out (kill!), at least not for now. But we don’t want missiles shot at civilians, or American soldiers. Our patience is wearing thin.”
In subsequent tweets, Khamenei warned the United States against entering the conflict, stating that “the damage it will suffer will be far greater than any harm that Iran may encounter.”
“The harm the US will suffer will definitely be irreparable if they enter this conflict militarily,” he posted.
In another tweet he added that it “was already suspected” that the United States was involved in Israel’s attacks, but “considering their recent remarks, this suspicion is growing stronger day by day.”
So far, Israel has killed at least 20 of Iran’s top military leaders, damaged key nuclear facilities, destroyed more than a third of Iran’s missile launchers, and hit over 1,100 targets around Iran.
