Khamenei's first statement was read by a news anchor on Iranian state television. In the statement, in which Mojtaba Khamenei was not shown on screen, he said the pressure tactic of closing the Strait of Hormuz should be used and that attacks on neighboring countries around the Persian Gulf will continue.
The 56-year-old leader further said that Iran only attacks military bases in neighboring countries and called on those countries to close American bases located within their borders.
Mojtaba Khamenei also vowed to avenge those killed during the war, including more than 165 victims of the attack on a girls' school, and threatened to destroy American and Israeli assets if Iran is not compensated for the damage caused to the country.
It is not possible to verify whether the statement actually came from Mojtaba Khamenei. Iranian and Israeli sources have previously told The New York Times that Mojtaba Khamenei was wounded in the leg on the same day the war began and that his father was killed.
Iran has repeatedly carried out attacks on airports, oil fields and refineries in neighboring countries during the war. It has also attacked commercial ships in the Persian Gulf.
