‘Legitimate duty’: Iran President Masoud Pezeshkian vows to ‘avenge’ Khamenei killing

“The Islamic Republic of Iran considers it its legitimate duty and right to avenge the perpetrators and masterminds of this historic crime,” said Pezeshkian in a statement carried by state TV.

Pezeshkian also said that the killing of Khamenei in was a “declaration of war against Muslims”.

“The assassination of the highest political authority of the Islamic Republic of Iran and a prominent leader of Shiism worldwide… is perceived as an open declaration of war against Muslims, and particularly against Shiites, everywhere in the world,” Pezeshkian said in the statement.

Masoud Pezeshkian’s statement comes a day after Iran’s supreme leader was killed in US–Israeli airstrikes, a seismic development in a conflict that’s spread to half a dozen countries across the Middle East and threatens to disrupt energy flows.

Iran confirmed the news hours later on Sunday, saying the government will observe 40 days of national mourning for the 86-year-old ruler, who was killed in his office compound.

“Heavy and pinpoint bombing, however, will continue, uninterrupted throughout the week or, as long as necessary,” Trump said.

Killing the ruler who dominated the Islamic Republic for more than three decades took the US-Israeli campaign to quash Iran’s regional influence to a new level. Tehran retaliated with its heaviest-ever missile strikes on US allies.

Khamenei’s death raises the question of who will rule Iran next, as he had not publicly designated a successor. The Assembly of Experts, the clerical body responsible for selecting the supreme leader, is required to appoint a new one. In the interim, a council comprising the president, the head of the judiciary and a jurist from the Guardian Council assumes the leader’s duties.

The council will meet later Sunday, Iran’s national security chief Ali Larijani said.