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War for deterrence
Iran’s Army said on Monday that “Rationality dictates that the war must continue until it achieves total deterrence for the Iranian nation,” with Brigadier General Mohammad Akrami-Nia, the Army spokesman, warning that otherwise “the enemy will miscalculate and invade Iran's sacred soil once again.”
“Rationality dictates that the war must continue until it achieves total deterrence”
The Army spokesman also condemned “Several southern Persian Gulf nations” for “collaborating with the criminal United States in strikes against Iran,” and warned that “Countries that have aided the US terrorist military in its illegal acts of aggression will undoubtedly face severe consequences when navigating the Strait of Hormuz.”
In parallel, Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said Tehran has received “proposals” via mediators to end renewed fighting with the United States, while not disclosing details of the offer or whether it involved a 10-day truce.
Baghaei said diplomatic efforts were coming “in lockstep” with armed forces, and he urged regional countries not to allow the US military to use their territory to launch or facilitate attacks on Iranian soil.
The Al Jazeera report also said the US launched a ninth consecutive day of strikes on Iran overnight, extending beyond the Strait of Hormuz region to areas such as Tabriz in northwest Iran.
Mediators, missiles, and rebuttals
Esmaeil Baghaei told reporters in Tehran that “Proposals have been raised through mediators and have been passed over to us,” while the report said US media had reported a 10-day truce that Baghaei did not confirm.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Washington “always remains open to diplomatic solutions,” but added that Iran’s missile and drone strikes, which “have killed three American service members over the past week,” were an impediment to diplomacy.
Iran’s chief negotiator, Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, hit back at Rubio on Monday, writing on X: “Actions must confirm claims, not contradict them,” as the Al Jazeera report said Rubio claimed a “split” among Iranian officials.
The Al Jazeera report said the IRGC released a video showing Kheibar Shekan, Fateh-110, Zolfaghar and Emad ballistic missiles being used in the latest strikes, with a message placed on one of the missiles reading: “Anyone who destabilises the security of the Iranian people will not themselves be safe either!”
In a separate account, the Tehran Times also quoted Akrami-Nia warning that “We will never allow military hardware or equipment intended for use against the Iranian people to pass through these waters.”
Strait of Hormuz stakes
Iran’s Army spokesman said on Monday that “Equipment cannot pass through the Strait of Hormuz if it would be used against the Iranian nation,” framing the Strait as a point of leverage as tensions escalated in the Persian Gulf.
“Equipment cannot pass through the Strait of Hormuz if it would be used against the Iranian nation”
In the same IRNA account, Brigadier General Akraminia said “Prudence dictates that war should continue to a point that leads to the establishment of full deterrence for the Iranian nation,” and warned that Gulf states that “having sold billions of dollars of oil and imported goods” were “today cooperating with the criminal United States” would face trouble transiting the Strait.
Al Jazeera reported that tankers and other commercial ships have been struck in the Strait of Hormuz, through which “roughly a fifth of global energy supplies passed before the war,” and said a US naval blockade on Iran’s southern ports continues.
The Al Jazeera report also said Baghaei warned on Monday that Iran was “counting down the minutes to welcome” US soldiers, and it added that the US bombing of southern Iran had led to speculation about a potential ground offensive.
PressTV similarly described Iran’s stance that the strategic waterway would be closed “until further notice” and at least until “the end of US interference in the region,” while also stating that Iranian authorities say “at least 57 people have been killed and more than 500 injured” in US strikes over the past three weeks.