Moscow: Russian President Vladimir Putin on Sunday offered condolences to his Iranian counterpart Masoud Pezeshkian over the killing of Iran Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and members of his family.
He expressed sympathy with the family and friends of Khamenei and the leadership and people of Iran.
In a statement issued by the Kremlin, Putin said: “Please, accept my deepest condolences on the assassination of Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic of Iran Seyyed Ali Khamenei and members of his family, committed in cynical violation of all norms of human morality and international law.”
“In our country, Grand Ayatollah Khamenei will be remembered as an outstanding statesman who made an enormous personal contribution to the development of friendly ties between Russia and Iran and to raising them to the level of a comprehensive strategic partnership,” he added.
Khamenei was killed in an epochal attack by the US and Israel, marking an inflexion point in the 46-year Shia-theocratic rule, as Tehran’s retaliation set off conflagrations in a swath of the Middle East. He had been Iran’s Supreme Leader since 1989 after the passing away of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini.
The Iranian government announced a 40-day mourning period after Khamenei’s death. Iranian state media confirmed on Sunday that Khamenei was killed in US-Israel airstrikes. Four relatives of Khamenei, including his daughter, grandchild and son-in-law, were also killed in the US-Israeli strikes, reported Iran’s Fars News Agency, citing sources.
Meanwhile, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has vowed to punish the “murderers” of Khamenei, following the confirmation of his death by state television, and promised that the response will be the “most ferocious offensive operation in history” against the US and Israel.
In a statement posted on its official Telegram page, the IRGC said, “The hand of revenge of the Iranian nation for a severe, decisive and regrettable punishment for the murderers of the Imam of the Ummah will not let go of them.”
It further said that the IRGC, the Armed Forces, and the Basij forces will “powerfully continue the path of their leader in defending his legacy, standing firm against internal and external plots and delivering what it described as a lesson-giving punishment to aggressors against the Islamic homeland.”
The Iranian Cabinet has also warned that the “great crime will never go unanswered.”
(IANS)
