Iran’s supreme leader on Saturday threatened "a crushing response” to Israeli strikes on his country, as the Pentagon said it would deploy additional resources to the region in the coming months.
Iran initially appeared to play down the damage caused by Israeli strikes inside the country late last month, raising hopes that it might de-escalate the situation rather than pursue a new cycle of retaliation. But in recent days, Iranian officials have changed their tone.
Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has the authority as commander in chief to order strikes on Israel. In a statement posted online, he said Saturday that Israel and the United States would "definitely receive a crushing response” for actions against Iran.
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