Iranian consul in Basra tells Trump to ‘look to his personal affairs’ over leader selection

BASRA — Iran’s Consul in Basra, Ali Abedi, dismissed U.S. President Donald Trump’s assertions that Washington should have influence over the selection of Iran’s new supreme leader, saying Trump “has nothing to do with the selection of the Iranian leader and should look to his personal affairs.”

“There has been a lot of talk from Trump in this regard during recent days, but this does not change anything; these are internal matters and concern only the Iranians,” Abedi told Al-Ahad TV.

Trump had claimed he would exert influence over the selection, stating that any individual chosen without Washington’s approval “is not going to last long.” The 88-member Assembly of Experts went ahead Sunday and named Mojtaba Khamenei, 56, as the Islamic Republic’s third supreme leader — the first hereditary succession in the history of the Islamic Republic — following the death of his father, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, in the U.S.-Israeli strikes that launched the regional war on Feb. 28.

On the war itself, Abedi said Iran is fighting without external support. “All the support we received was moral, political, and media-based, and in the war, we rely on ourselves only and fight alone,” he said, adding that “until this moment, we are using old missiles and have not used new missiles” and that Iran manufactures its own weapons domestically.

Abedi also addressed Iran’s strikes on Gulf states hosting U.S. military bases, saying Iran has “no hostility toward neighboring countries” but is “forced to shell” them due to the American military presence. “The Zionist entity [Israel] has dragged the United States into this war, and it is not easy for the United States to exit this war,” he said, adding that Iran “will strike all the military and political bases of this aggressive entity and America in the region.”

The 88-member Assembly of Experts officially named Mojtaba Khamenei, 56, as the Islamic Republic’s third supreme leader on Sunday, following the death of his father, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, in the U.S.-Israeli strikes that launched the regional war on Feb. 28. He had for years maintained significant influence within the security apparatus and the IRGC before his appointment.

President Donald Trump had asserted that he would exert influence over the selection of Iran’s next supreme leader, stating that “he’s going to have to get approval from us.”

Some excerpts of Abedi’s interview on Al-Ahad TV:

Trump has nothing to do with the selection of the Iranian leader, and he should look to his personal affairs. There has been a lot of talk from Trump in this regard during recent days, but this does not change anything; these are internal matters and concern only the Iranians.

All the support we received was moral, political, and media-based, and in the war, we rely on ourselves only and fight alone.

Until this moment, we are using old missiles and have not used new missiles. We did not bring this power from abroad only for it to end; we manufacture the missiles and this power internally.

I thank the entire Iraqi people for offering their condolences to the Islamic Republic on the killing of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.

The Zionist entity has dragged the United States into this war, and it is not easy for the United States to exit this war.

We will strike all the military and political bases of this aggressive entity and America in the region, and we are forced to shell all the military bases present in the region.

We do not have any hostility toward neighboring countries, and we announced that to these countries before the war and during the war—that we have no enmity with you—but due to the presence of military bases in these countries, we are forced to shell them.