Tehran, Iran – State media and Iran’s military and security leadership say they are ready for a resumption of war with the United States and Israel as they continue to signal opposition to any major concessions during talks.
Authorities in Iran staged more demonstrations of defiance with military parades in the streets of Tehran on Tuesday night and Wednesday, coinciding with the scheduled end of a two-week ceasefire, which US President Donald Trump has now extended for an unspecified period after negotiators failed to reach Pakistan for talks.
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In Enghelab (Revolution) Square in downtown Tehran, a Khorramshahr-4 ballistic missile, one of Iran’s longest-range missiles, was fired into a cheering crowd that had gathered to support Iran’s establishment.
A few kilometers to the north, in Vanak Square, masked men carrying assault rifles stood over a truck-mounted Ghadar ballistic missile launcher and chanted, “Death to America” over loudspeakers.
Some chanted “Sayyid Majid, precision striker, plow Tel Aviv” while addressing Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) aerospace chief Majid Mousavi and called on him to order more missile attacks against Israel.
Motorcades led by pick-up trucks broadcasting religious songs also passed through neighborhoods at night, with participants waving flags of armed groups from other countries in Iran’s “axis of resistance”, including Lebanon’s Hezbollah.
A clip shared by state media from the gathering in Enghelab Square showed a religious singer, Hossein Taheri, speaking to a crowd of supporters while standing next to a soldier in a wheelchair whose legs and arms were severed when he was hit by a bomb while manning a missile launcher.
“What else must the US do for this to be considered a ceasefire violation?” Taheri asked angrily, adding that state supporters would remain on the streets until they “take our revenge” for the wounded soldier and others like him.
State-linked media outlets also released more footage and interviews of armed people, including women, who said they were ready to fight in the streets.
Authorities have circulated photos of pink missiles, drones, and assault rifles to emphasize that women support the state’s cause of conflict. And in an apparent effort to show unity and diversity among its supporters, many of the women featured in the state message do not conform to the strict Islamic hijab standards enforced by the establishment.
State television has adopted a tough stance regarding talks with America. Presenters and analysts have advocated military force in the face of Trump’s threats and ultimatums.
This week a state television host claimed, without citing any sources for his claim, that 87 percent of Iranians would prefer to go back to war than make any major concessions in negotiations. This came as state media repeatedly accused anti-establishment Iranians inside and outside the country of being “anti-war”, as some had expressed support for military action against Iran in the hope that it would help overthrow the government.
Another host said Washington wants the war to end, but for now it has opted to prolong negotiations in order to put pressure on Iran through a naval blockade of the country’s ports.
The IRGC-affiliated Fars news agency released a video generated by artificial intelligence on Wednesday that appeared to show an angry Trump and his team waiting for Iranian negotiators to arrive before being humiliated by the president himself after extending the ceasefire.
‘Say goodbye to oil production’
Iranian military officials running the war continue to broadcast messages of flexibility.
The army’s Khatam al-Anbiya central headquarters said the armed forces had their “fingers on the trigger” to respond to any aggression by launching stronger strikes than before, while the IRGC said two ships trying to pass through the Strait of Hormuz were seized after failing to obtain the necessary permits.
The IRGC’s Mousavi also warned Iran’s neighbors that if their territories and facilities are used for more attacks against Iran, “they will have to say goodbye to oil production in the Middle East region”.
As the state-imposed, near-total internet shutdown in Iran entered its 54th day on Wednesday, the IRGC-affiliated Tasnim news agency suggested that undersea high-speed internet cables could be targeted next, creating a “digital catastrophe” for Iran’s Arab neighbors who rely heavily on such undersea infrastructure.
Saeed Iravani, Iran’s ambassador to the United Nations in New York, told reporters that another round of talks in Islamabad could take place only if Washington lifts the blockade imposed on Iran.
“The enemy is in no position to dictate time to us,” hardline judiciary chief Gholam-Hossein Mohseni-Ezei said on Wednesday in reaction to Trump’s extension of the ceasefire.
Trump said his decision to pursue the ceasefire was “based on the fact that the Iran government is severely fragmented” and cannot come up with a unified resolution. He also said that “Iran is collapsing economically” and that its officials are unable to pay military and police personnel.
Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, Speaker of Iran’s Parliament and head of its delegation in the first round of talks with the US in Pakistan, has conveyed that the establishment will not “surrender” to Trump. But in a video message addressed to the Iranian people earlier this week, the former IRGC commander turned police chief and mayor of Tehran struck a slightly different tone from the more aggressive messaging from other officials.
Pointing to Israel’s military capabilities, he said, “In military power we are not stronger than America. It is clear that they have more money, equipment and facilities.” “No, we did not destroy them, but in this war we are the winners on the field.”
Ghalibaf also stressed that Tehran’s main goal should be to “advance and strengthen the rights of the people” rather than pursuing complete victory and framed negotiations as a “way to fight.”
‘What answer will the fundamentalists have?’
Many members of Iran’s hardline-dominated parliament oppose any deal that could signal weakness, demoralize regime supporters on the streets and potentially invite future attacks.
Ghalibaf’s strategic affairs adviser Mahdi Mohammadi said in a tweet on Wednesday that Tehran should “take the initiative” by giving a “military response” to the naval blockade, believing it to be an act of war tantamount to bombing the country.
Massoud Pezeshkian, a relatively moderate president with limited power, has also refused to surrender to the US and expressed support for the IRGC, but has said he wants the fighting to stop because he believes it will not benefit anyone.
“The solution to the problems lies not in escalating tensions, but in reason, dialogue and avoiding further destruction,” he said this week.
During the 40-day attacks when thousands of munitions were launched by the US and Israel across Iran, oil and gas facilities, steel factories, petrochemical producers, power plants, aluminum manufacturers, railway networks and bridges were attacked. Many houses, hospitals, schools and universities were damaged.
Trump has threatened to send Iran “back to the Stone Age” and attack more critical civilian infrastructure to destroy its “civilization” if a deal is not reached.
Sunni Friday prayer leader in Zahedan Abdolhamid Ismailzahi, an influential political figure in the south-eastern province of Sistan and Baluchistan bordering Pakistan, called on Tuesday for a “fair agreement”, which he described as the only way to avoid the impasse.
“The country’s skies are occupied by the enemy, the infrastructure is on the verge of destruction and the armed forces lack the necessary means for air defence,” he said.
“What answer will tomorrow the fanatics who stubbornly stand in the way have before God and this oppressed nation for the ruin of the motherland?”
