Tehran, March 2 (.) Iran’s security chief Ali Larijani on Monday ruled out any renewed negotiations with Washington, sharply escalating rhetoric as military confrontation between Iran, the United States, and Israel intensifies across the Middle East.
Larijani, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, dismissed reports of backchannel diplomacy and accused US President Donald Trump of plunging the region into instability through what he described as “delusional actions”.
In a post on X, Larijani said Trump had turned his “America First” slogan into “Israel First” and sacrificed American soldiers for Israel’s ambitions. “He has plunged the Middle East into chaos with his delusional fantasies and now fears more American casualties,” Larijani said, adding that Iran would continue to defend itself.
The remarks came as hostilities entered their second day following the killing of Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei, in US-Israel air strikes. Iran launched retaliatory attacks targeting US assets across the Gulf, with reports of casualties in Bahrain and further raids in Iraq and Kuwait.
The US military said it had struck more than 1,000 Iranian targets, including underground missile facilities, and destroyed several Iranian naval assets. President Trump warned Iran’s security forces to surrender or face “certain death” and indicated the campaign could last around four weeks.
Moreover, Iran’s military shot down an Israeli Hermes drone in the west of the country, the Tasnim news agency reported on Monday.
An Israeli drone was shot down near the city of Khorramabad, the administrative center of Lorestan province.
The Israeli military said Iran fired additional missiles towards Israel, prompting air defence systems to intercept the projectiles and advisories for residents to take shelter.
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