The new naval commander of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard warns the United States and Israel
In a statement issued on the occasion of the funeral of slain Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ naval commander warned that “divine retaliation” against the United States and Israel is “not far away.”In a message on Saturday, IRGC Navy Commander-in-Chief Admiral Ali Ozmaei said he and all IRGC Navy personnel “pledge to God that by following the ideals of the martyrs, we will continue the path of the nation’s martyred leader with strength and steadfastness.”Iranian official media quoted Khamenei as saying: “We have strong hope that divine revenge against the terrorist America and the illegitimate Zionist regime is not far away.”Ozmaei also spoke about the late leader, describing him as “a man in the fields of patience and insight” and “a firm voice of truth in the face of the storm of falsehood,” saying that although he “now rests in divine mercy,” his name, memory, path, and “pure blood” will remain alive among the nation.The leader said that the funeral ceremony was not a farewell, but rather a “renewed covenant” for his ideals, faith and determination, praising his defense of the dignity of the Islamic nation and his firm stand against the “front of infidelity and arrogance” throughout his life.
Ozmaei said, referring to Khamenei’s killing, “Those who committed this crime thought they could stop the path of truth, but instead they exposed themselves to the condemnation of history and the anger and severe punishment of this nation.”Ozmaei appears to be the replacement for Alireza Tangsiri, who was killed in an Israeli air strike in March.This warning comes as Iran prepares to bury Khamenei on Thursday in Mashhad, with authorities bracing for up to 3,000 possible deaths during the massive funeral processions.