TEHRAN, 28 September 2026 — Iran’s Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei said the United States will be forced to leave the Middle East after suffering “painful blows” in the region, according to a written statement carried by Iranian state television on Monday.
Khamenei did not name Washington directly. He said the enemy “does not venture beyond the Arabian Sea” after attacks by “valiant fighters and the guardians of the Strait of Hormuz.”
“Whenever they have braved this risk, they have only brought harm upon themselves. It will not be long before the Arabian Sea, too, would rid itself of their presence,” he said.
The Arabian Sea is a major maritime corridor leading to Iran’s coast and the Strait of Hormuz. Since the war began with US-Israeli airstrikes on Iran in February 2026, Tehran and Washington have contested control of the strategic waterway. Iran imposed a blockade on Hormuz early in the conflict; the United States responded with a blockade of Iranian ports.
The remarks came as efforts continued to revive talks aimed at ending the fighting. Khamenei was appointed in March 2026 after his father, Ali Khamenei, was killed in the 28 February strikes. He has rarely appeared in public since then and usually issues written statements.
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