Larijani says Iran prepared for prolonged war amid escalating conflict

Iran is prepared for a prolonged conflict and will ensure its adversaries “regret their miscalculations”, Ali Larijani, Secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, said on Monday.

In a statement posted on the social media platform X, Larijani declared that Iran, unlike the United States, was ready to wage a long-term war following the latest attacks attributed to Washington and Tel Aviv.

“Whatever the cost, we will resolutely defend ourselves and our 6,000-year-old civilisation,” he wrote, adding that Iran would continue to defend itself against what it described as aggression.

Larijani also asserted that Iran had not initiated wars in modern history, stating: “As has been the case for the past 300 years, Iran has never been the one to start wars.”

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His remarks came amid ongoing military escalation after Israel and the United States launched strikes on Iranian territory beginning Saturday morning, according to Iranian reports. Tehran says the attacks resulted in hundreds of deaths, including senior security figures.

In response, Iran has launched missile and drone strikes towards Israel and American military bases in the region. Some of those retaliatory attacks have reportedly caused casualties and damage to infrastructure.

Washington and Tel Aviv accuse Tehran of developing nuclear and missile capabilities that pose a threat to Israel and allied regional states. Iran denies seeking nuclear weapons, insisting its programme is peaceful.

The confrontation comes despite recent diplomatic efforts mediated by Oman, which Iranian officials had described as making progress before the outbreak of hostilities.

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