Iran mocks Trump after 'locked and loaded' threat: We know US rescue record well

Moments after Donald Trump threatened military intervention in Tehran if it fired on peaceful protesters, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s adviser mocked the US President, saying that Iranians were well aware of US "rescue operations" in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Gaza.

In response to Trump’s direct threat to the Ayatollah, Ali Shamkhani, a senior aide to Iran’s Supreme Leader, reminded him of the US’s hasty withdrawals from Afghanistan and Iraq, among other examples.

Shamkhani was referring to the US Army’s rapid exit from Afghanistan in 2021 after maintaining a stronghold there for two decades, leaving behind one million weapons and military equipment - mostly funded by Washington DC- to the Taliban.

Another example Shamkhani cited was the US withdrawal from Iraq at the turn of the last decade, which eventually contributed to the rise of ISIS and a bloody four-year war that devastated the country between 2013 and 2017.

Accusing Trump of engaging in what he called "adventurism," Shamkhani told Americans to "watch over their soldiers."

Taking to X, the Khamenei adviser warned that any intervention aimed at Iran's security would be met with a swift and "regrettable" response before it could materialise.

He added that Iran's national security was a "red line" and not something to be tested through what he described as "adventurous."

"Iranians know US 'rescue' record well, from Iraq and Afghanistan to Gaza. Any intervening hand-nearing Iran Security on pretexts will be cut off with a Regret Inducing Response. Iran’s national security is a Red Line, not material for adventurist tweets," Shamkhani said.

Earlier in the day, Trump shot off a warning to Khamenei and wrote: "If Iran shoots and violently kills peaceful protesters, which is their custom, the United States of America will come to their rescue. We are locked and loaded and ready to go."

As reports of chants calling for the death of Iran's Supreme Leader and for the return of the exiled leader to the US began circulating, Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei’s representative in Iran’s Razavi Khorasan province, Ahmad Alamolhoda, dismissed the developments as fabricated using artificial intelligence, according to Iran .

Alamolhoda alleged that Israeli media and what he called "enemy-affiliated outlets" filmed crowds and then used AI technology to superimpose anti-government chants onto the visuals.

He said the aim was to create the impression that Iranians have turned against the Islamic Revolution and want the system to collapse.

Along with chants of "Mullahs must leave Iran", the slogan of "Javid Shah", meaning "long live the Shah", was raised by the protestors.

- Ends