Khamenei’s first public statement after his appointment as supreme leader on March 9, 2026:

“[A]nd naturally, as we had explicitly warned, we simply attacked those bases without attacking those countries. From now on, we will inevitably continue to do so, although we still believe in the need for friendship between ourselves and our neighbors. These countries must make their duty clear to the invaders of our beloved homeland and the murderers of our people. I recommend that they close those bases as soon as possible; because they must have realized by now that the claim of establishing security and peace by America was nothing more than a lie.” Haley Ott, “New Iran Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei says Strait of Hormuz must remain shut in first message: State TV,” CBS News, March 12, 2026, https://www.cbsnews.com/news/iran-war-new-supreme-leader-mojtaba-khamenei-first-statement-strait-of-hormuz/.