'Will defend our six-thousand-year-old civilisation': Iran ready for 'long war' with the US-Israel

Iran's security chief on Monday (Mar 02) said that the Islamic Republic is prepared for its war with the United States and Israel to last for a long period of time after the conflict in West Asia entered its third day and spread across the region and beyond, following the death of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei in a joint US-Israeli strike on a high-security compound in Tehran.

"Iran, unlike the United States, has prepared itself for a long war," said Ali Larijani, the powerful head of Tehran's Supreme National Security Council, in a post on X.

Larijani, who is considered the most powerful figure in Iran following the assassination of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, declared, "We will fiercely defend ourselves and our six-thousand-year-old civilisation regardless of the costs and will make the enemies sorry for their miscalculation."

Early in the day, he ruled out renewed negotiation with Washington and dismissed reports of backchannel diplomacy while accusing Trump of pushing the region into instability through "delusional actions."

“We will not negotiate with the United States,” he wrote in a post on X.

The conflict in West Asia expanded into a multifront regional war as Iran retaliated, targeting Israel, US allies and military bases in the region. Major cities in the region, including Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Amman, Riyadh and Doha, came under attack from missiles and drones launched by Tehran's security forces.

The war was triggered after the United States and Israel launched a joint operation in Iran seeking to dismantle Iran's nuclear programme and spark regime change by targeting the country's top leadership in decapitation strikes, including Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei. Several other top leaders were also killed in the US-Israel coordinated aerial assault on Saturday.

The strikes, codenamed Operation Roaring Lion by Israel and Operation Epic Fury by the United States, targeted government buildings, military installations, and suspected nuclear facilities, while aiming specifically to decapitate the highest levels of Iranian leadership.

In retaliation, Iran’s Revolutionary Guard launched strikes on Israel, US military bases and its allies across West Asia, including Qatar, Iraq, the UAE, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and Jordan.

Disclaimer: WION takes utmost care to accurately and responsibly report ongoing conflicts in West Asia involving Israel, Iran, US, Gulf nations and non-state actors like Hezbollah, Hamas, Houthis, Islamic State, and others. Claims and counterclaims, disinformation and misinformation are being made online and offline. Given this context, WION cannot independently verify the authenticity of all statements, social media posts, photos and videos.