Middle East Crisis Iran's Response

President: New Council Will Not Change Course – Will “Crush the Enemy”

Iran's new ruling council has “begun its work,” President Masoud Pezeshkian said in a televised speech.

“We will continue with all our strength along the path that has been set,” Pezeshkian said. He said that retaliatory attacks against the United States and Israel would continue and claimed, among other things, that Iran would “crush the enemy's bases.”

The council, which in addition to Pezeshkian also includes a member of Iran's Guardian Council and a representative from the judiciary, will govern the country until a replacement for Ayatollah Ali Khamenei can be appointed. Khamenei was killed on Saturday in attacks by Israel and the United States.

Iran's "Crown Prince" Urges Military to Switch Sides

Reza Pahlavi, son of Iran's last Shah, is urging the Iranian population to show their support for the attacks on the country.

"I ask you, while thinking about your safety, to show that you are satisfied with and support the crushing of the Islamic Republic," Pahlavi writes on X.

He also calls on Iran's military and police to turn their backs on the current regime and "ensure a stable and safe transition."

The 65-year-old Pahlavi lives in exile in the United States, and many Iranians both inside and outside the country support him as a possible future leader.

The opposition in Iran, however, is divided. Pahlavi has been heavily criticized, among other things, for his support for Israel, and has never distanced himself from his father's authoritarian rule.

Middle East crisis  Iran attack
Trump: attacks on Iran could continue for four weeks

The attacks on Iran could continue for another four weeks, Donald Trump said in an interview with the Daily Mail.

– It has always been a four-week process. Even though it is strong, it is a big country, it will take four weeks, or less, says Donald Trump about the American military operation.

Earlier on Sunday evening, Donald Trump said in another interview that he would hold talks with the ruling council that took over in Iran after the death of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. He clarified shortly afterwards that this does not mean that the attacks will stop.