Azernews.Az

Akbar Novruz

Read more

Iran's Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf warned on Thursday that seven million Iranians are willing to take up arms to defend their country in the event of a ground incursion by United States and Israeli troops, AzerNEWS reports.

"A powerful national campaign sweeping across the country has brought forward around 7 million Iranians who have already stepped up and declared they're ready to pick up arms and stand in defense of our nation, " Ghalibaf said in a social media post. He added that every Iranian becomes a soldier when there is a need to defend the country.

"You come for our home... You're gonna meet the whole family," the speaker concluded.

Iran has launched more missile strikes at Israel following a threat from United States President Donald Trump, who stated he would bomb Iran back to “the Stone Ages.” During his address to the nation on Wednesday, Trump mentioned that Washington is close to achieving its military objectives.

In response, Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson announced that Tehran will continue to retaliate as long as US-Israeli strikes persist. Esmaeil Baghaei emphasized that Tehran “will not tolerate this vicious cycle of war, negotiations, and ceasefire.”

Iran’s Health Ministry reported that a century-old medical research center was “severely damaged” due to ongoing strikes by US-Israeli forces. Former Iranian Foreign Minister Kamal Kharazi, who has reportedly been involved in back-channel diplomatic efforts, has been seriously wounded in a US-Israeli strike at his home in Tehran, according to media reports. Meanwhile, Iran continues to target Gulf nations.

In an address to the US public on Wednesday, Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian stated that his country holds no hostility toward the American people, Europeans, or its neighboring countries.