'Disrespectful and condemnable': Iran on Trump's Khamenei remarks; asks US president if he is 'genuine about a deal'

Time of India

7 hours ago

Donald Trump; Ayatollah Ali Khamenei
Iran's foreign minister Abbas Araghchi on Friday asked Donald Trump to withdraw his "disrespectful and unacceptable" remarks on Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the supreme leader of the Islamic Republic, if the US president is "genuine about wanting a deal.
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"If President Trump is genuine about wanting a deal, he should put aside the disrespectful and unacceptable tone towards Iran's Supreme Leader, Grand Ayatollah Khamenei, and stop hurting his millions of heartfelt followers," Araghchi posted on X.
The "deal" he mentioned relates to Iran's nuclear programme, which was at the centre of the recent conflict between US ally Israel and their common rival Iran. The hostilities began with Israel's strikes on Iran's nuclear and military sites on June 13, ahead of fresh US-Iran talks over the latter's nuclear programme.
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Mocking Israel, Araghchi said the Jewish State had "no choice but to run to daddy,' a reference to the United States, which bombed three key Iranian nuclear sites on June 22.
"The Great and Powerful Iranian People, who showed the world that the Israeli regime had NO CHOICE but to RUN to "Daddy" to avoid being flattened by our Missiles, do not take kindly to Threats and Insults. If Illusions lead to worse mistakes, Iran will not hesitate to unveil its Real Capabilities, which will certainly END any Delusion about the Power of Iran," he wrote on social media.
The 12-day war ended the day after America's Operation Midnight Hammer in Iran, which had retaliated by launching missiles on a US air base in Qatar.