Iran will move the management of the strategic Strait of Hormuz into a new phase, its Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei purportedly says in a statement read out on state TV.
“Iran is not seeking war but will not forfeit its rights and considers all resistance fronts as a unified entity,” the statement attributed to Khamenei adds, asserting that Tehran is the “definite victor” of the war.
The supreme leader also ostensibly says that people should not leave the streets of Iran despite “negotiations with the enemy,” and that Tehran is resolute in seeking to “avenge the blood” of its late supreme leader and the country’s “martyrs.”
Khamenei, who took over the role of supreme leader after his father was killed at the start of the war in February, has not been seen or heard in public amid the conflict, leading to speculation he has been seriously wounded.
The statement attributed to him also calls on Iran’s Arab neighbors to “stand in the right place” so that Iran can “show you our brotherhood.”
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From the Liveblog of
Thursday, April 9, 2026
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