Mojtaba Khamenei Denies Attacking Turkiye and Oman, Calls it a ‘Zionist Deception’

 Iran’s new Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, issued a written message on Friday, (March 20th, 2026) to mark the beginning of the Persian New Year (Nowruz) and the coinciding Eid al-Fitr holiday. 
In his statement the leader categorically denied Iranian involvement in recent military strikes against Türkiye and Oman, instead alleging that the attacks were a ‘Zionist deception’ orchestrated by Israel to isolate Tehran from its neighbors.

The message, broadcast on state television and released via official channels, comes just three weeks after the assassination of his father, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, in a massive joint U.S.-Israeli air operation on February 28. Mojtaba Khamenei, whose succession was confirmed by the Assembly of Experts amid the ongoing conflict, used the high-profile occasion to push back against claims that Iran or its regional allies were behind the destabilizing strikes in the Gulf and Anatolia.
"The Islamic Republic and its allied forces in the region were in no way behind the attacks on our brothers in Oman and Türkiye," the Supreme Leader stated. He further claimed that the operations were "deceptions by the Zionist enemy" aimed at "creating divisions among regional nations" and undermining the "creed and interests" shared by Iran and its neighbors.

The 2026 conflict, which began with a surprise offensive dubbed "Operation Epic Fury" by the United States, has seen a rapid escalation of regional hostilities. While Tehran has claimed responsibility for several retaliatory strikes on energy infrastructure and military sites in the UAE and Saudi Arabia, Mojtaba Khamenei’s latest remarks appear aimed at de-escalating tensions with Ankara and Muscat.

Addressing the internal state of the country, the Supreme Leader described the ongoing war as a "gross miscalculation" by Washington and Tel Aviv. He asserted that the strategy of "decapitating" the regime through the assassination of top leaders—including his father and several high-ranking IRGC officials—had failed to trigger a domestic collapse. Instead, he claimed the conflict has fostered a "strange unity" among the Iranian people.

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