New Iranian Supreme Leader Accuses Adversaries of ‘Hybrid Warfare’

Iran’s new Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, accused his country’s adversaries of resorting to “hybrid warfare” in his first public message since assuming the role on March 8.

The message, read out at a ceremony in Tehran marking the 37th death anniversary of Iran’s founder, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, claimed the “malicious enemy” had been defeated militarily and was now attempting to weaken public resilience and create divisions among officials.

“The malicious enemy has been defeated in its confrontation with the armed forces… it has concentrated its efforts on two objectives in the framework of hybrid warfare: weakening the people’s resilience and creating miscalculations among the country’s officials,” the message stated. It further warned that the enemy sought to “plant the seeds of doubt, despair, fear, mistrust and division” and called for national unity and steadfastness to counter the plot.

The statement also singled out “Imperialism, led by the US,” for establishing Israel as a military base and opposing a strong, independent Iran. It cautioned Iranian authorities that “any act that causes pessimism and disappointment among the people is considered a kind of aid to the enemy.”

This year’s commemoration was held in the shadow of the recent assassination of the previous supreme leader, Ali Khamenei, on February 28, which triggered a regional war. A ceasefire was brokered on April 8, but subsequent talks for a permanent resolution have failed. At the mausoleum, an empty chair with Ali Khamenei’s portrait was displayed, while attendees waved Iranian flags and banners of the Lebanese group Hezbollah.