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Iran’s president, Masoud Pezeshkian, has said that the country would not bow to pressure from Israel or the United States as the conflict in the Middle East moved into its second week.
Speaking in a televised address broadcast by Iranian state media on Saturday, Pezeshkian dismissed calls for Iran’s unconditional surrender, saying such expectations would never be realised.
The Iranian president also expressed regret over strikes that affected neighbouring countries, saying Iran had no intention of targeting them unless attacks against the country originated from their territories.
He said the interim leadership council had agreed that Iran would halt attacks on neighbouring states and would only launch missiles if aggression against Iran came from those countries.
“I must apologise on my own behalf and on behalf of Iran to the neighbouring countries that were attacked by Iran,” he said.
“The interim leadership council agreed yesterday that no more attacks will be made on neighbouring countries and no missiles will be fired unless an attack on Iran originates from those countries.”
The conflict escalated after Israel and the United States launched strikes on Iran on February 28, an operation that killed Iran’s supreme leader, Ali Khamenei, and triggered a wider regional confrontation.
Since then, Iran has carried out retaliatory missile and drone attacks targeting Israel and American interests in several countries across the Gulf region.
Pezeshkian is currently one of three members of an interim leadership council managing the country’s affairs following Khamenei’s death.
