Iran’s President defies US demands while apologising for strikes on neighbours

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Dubai, March 7

 Iran’s President said on Saturday that a demand by the United States for an unconditional surrender is a “dream that they should take to their grave.”

President Masoud Pezeshkian made the statement in a prerecorded address aired by state television.

He also apologised for Iran’s attacks on regional countries, insisting that Tehran would halt them and suggesting they were caused by miscommunication in the ranks.

The comments came as intense Iranian fire targeted the Gulf Arab states early Saturday as Israel and the United States kept up their airstrikes targeting the Islamic Republic. There were repeated attacks Saturday morning on Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

There was no foreseeable end to the fighting. US President Donald Trump’s administration approved a new USD 151 million arms sale to Israel after Trump said he would not negotiate with Iran without its “unconditional surrender”, and US officials warned of a forthcoming bombing campaign they said would be the most intense yet in the weeklong conflict.

Iran’s UN ambassador said the country would “take all necessary measures” to defend itself.

Associated Press video showed explosions flashing and smoke rising over western Tehran as Israel said it had begun a broad wave of strikes. Also, early Saturday, loud booms sounded in Jerusalem, and incoming missiles from Iran had people heading to bomb shelters across Israel.

There were no immediate reports of casualties from Israel’s emergency services.

The US and Israel have battered Iran with strikes, targeting its military capabilities, leadership and nuclear programme. The stated goals and timelines for the war have repeatedly shifted, as the US has at times suggested it seeks to topple Iran’s government or elevate new leadership from within.

Iran strikes Gulf States as fighting spreads.

PTI