JEWISH CHRONICLE
Iran chief negotiator vows to avenge Supreme Leader’s death with ‘liberation of Jerusalem’
Ali Hamedani
June 18, 2026

Iran’s chief negotiator in the deal signed today with the US has warned the death of Supreme Leader Ali Khameini will be avenged with the “liberation of Jerusalem”. The Memorandum of Understanding agreed between the US and the Islamic Republic has raised hopes of ending the conflict in the Gulf, pending a final agreement. But Tehran’s chief negotiator Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf signalled the regime remains committed to its longstanding objective of the destruction of Israel, in a newly published interview that contradicts hopes of peace. Responding to regime hardliners who oppose any engagement with the US, he vowed the regime will take revenge for Ali Khaemini’s death in an Israeli air strike in February, and disparaged prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Ghalibaf, who is the Speaker of the Iranian parliament, said: “The true way to avenge the martyred Imam is the liberation of Jerusalem. One hundred Netanyahus are not worth the shoelace of the martyred Imam.” READ MORE