Top Aide to Iran's Supreme Leader: "Hormuz More Important Than Dozens of Atomic Bombs"

As the Iranian military has completely blocked the Strait of Hormuz, a close aide to Iran's new leader, Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, has emphasized the strategic value of the strait.

View of the Strait of Hormuz. Photo by Reuters Yonhap News Agency

According to semi-official Iranian news agency ISNA on July 12 (local time), Mohsen Rezaei, military advisor to the supreme leader, highlighted the Strait of Hormuz as a "strategic passage" during a memorial event for Ali Khamenei, the previous supreme leader and father of Mojtaba Khamenei. He stated, "It is more important than dozens of atomic bombs, and the Islamic Republic of Iran will defend it."

His remarks came after the Iranian military attacked merchant vessels passing through the Strait of Hormuz, prompting retaliatory military action from the United States, and subsequently declared a full blockade of the strait that morning, citing the illegal passage of ships as the reason.

Rezaei, a former commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), is considered a hardliner. He is suspected of leading the assassination of American oil company executives in southern Iran in 1978, a year before the Islamic Revolution.

On February 28, when the United States and Israel carried out airstrikes against Iran and Ali Khamenei was killed in an explosion, Rezaei stated, "The feelings of the Iranian people were attacked, and they killed our father."

He added, "Revenge does not mean the end of the revolution; rather, it is an important tool to continue the revolution. We will also pursue the path of revenge, as the Quran emphasizes fighting against enemies and subduing aggressors."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.