Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has said that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu must be sentenced to death for his "war crimes in Gaza and Lebanon."
Khamenei made the remarks while giving a televised speech on Monday in Tehran as part of the Basij Week.
"What the Zionist regime did in Gaza and Lebanon is not a victory, it is a war crime," Iranian state media quoted the Ayatollah. The Supreme Leader added that the ICC arrest warrant for Netanyahu was not enough and warned that the Resistance Front will be expanded more in the future.
Not only Netanyahu and his defence minister, but all political and military authorities of the Zionist regime should be prosecuted, Khamenei added. His response comes amid the arrest warrants issued by the International Criminal Court against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former war minister Yoav Gallant over the war in Gaza.
The Supreme Leader's statement comes amid reports that his country is preparing measures to show a “proper response” to the recent Israeli attack.
In an exclusive interview with Tasnim News Agency, Ali Larijani, an advisor to Khamenei, said relevant officials in the Iranian military and government are preparing measures to show proper response to recent Israeli aggression against Iran.
On whether there would be a further confrontation between Iran and Israel, Ali Larijani said, "That (restoring deterrence) is a key issue. Relevant authorities are pursuing the issue carefully to ensure that Iran’s (future) response to Israel fulfils these specifications."
He said the relevant military officials will make the right decision and that he neral” he said “this is an issue that we should allow relevant military officials to take the right decision. I know that they are thinking about different ways to reach that (decision)." He added that the issue needed careful consideration and secrecy since it is related to Iran’s national security.
