Iran’s new supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, the second son of late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, attends a meeting in Tehran, Iran, October 13, 2024. (File Photo: Hamed Jafarnejad/ISNA/WANA/REUTERS)

Khamenei did not appear in person and his remarks were read out by a state television presenter. Iranian officials have said Khamenei was lightly wounded in the initial February 28 airstrikes, but the extent of his injuries is unclear.

His statement called on Iran's neighbours to shut US bases on their territory. Iranian parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf warned on Thursday that any invasion of its islands will “shatter all restraint” and result in bloodshed.