Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf accused the United States of planning a ground attack even as it publicly engaged in diplomatic efforts to end the war.
“The enemy is publicly sending messages of negotiation and dialogue while secretly planning a ground attack,” Ghalibaf said in a statement carried by the official IRNA news agency.
“The most critical phase of the war”
“Our men are waiting for US troops to arrive on the ground to set them on fire and punish their regional allies once and for all,” he added.
Ghalibaf went on to call for unity among Iranians, saying the country is in a “great global war” that is “at its most critical stage”.
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“We are confident that we can punish the United States, regret the attack on Iran and firmly secure our legitimate rights,” said Ghalibaf, a former commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), police chief and mayor of Tehran.
According to reports, he was widely seen as a potential partner in the US and Donald Trump’s preferred choice for the new Iranian leader.
One month of Operation Epic Fury
Ghalibaf’s comments come as Operation Epic Fury, launched by the US and Israel on February 28, enters its second month. Despite initial success, including the killing of then-Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and other top political and military leaders of Tehran, the US was unable to defeat Iran militarily.
While the US mainland is beyond the range of Iran’s missiles, US bases in the Middle East and Washington’s allies in the Persian Gulf, along with Israel, have been on the side of Tehran’s response.
Iran’s attacks on critical oil and gas infrastructure and its de facto blockade of the Strait of Hormuz have resulted in a global energy crisis, making a war that is already unpopular at home even more unsustainable for the Trump administration.
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US President Donald Trump has also sent mixed messages on the Iran war so far, with claims ranging from “the US has already won the war” to “the US is willing to negotiate a settlement with Iran”.
Will Iran be the next Iraq/Afghanistan?
Many military experts warned that when the US decided to attack Iran, it was being dragged into another protracted conflict, such as the invasion of Iraq and Afghanistan.
The Trump administration insisted that, unlike Iraq and Afghanistan, Operation Epic Fury would be completed within weeks.
The US is preparing for a ground invasion of Iran
Ghalibaf’s comments also come amid reports that the US is beefing up its military presence in the Middle East for what could be a weeks-long ground invasion of Iran.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi also warned that the United States and Israel may seek to expand the scope of the ongoing conflict by involving other countries or organizing “false flag operations.”
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Araghchi warned that Washington and Tel Aviv could try to expand “unprovoked aggression” against Iran “by forcing other countries to participate in aggression or by conducting false flag operations against third countries.”
He also stressed that countries have legal obligations under international law to prevent their territory or resources from being used to plan or support acts of “aggression,” according to Press TV.
Key things
- Iran perceives a dual strategy from the US side: diplomatic overtures combined with military aggression.
- Iranian officials emphasize national unity and readiness to respond to US actions.
- Adding to the complexity of the conflict are mixed signals from US leadership about military objectives and actions.
