Major General Ali Abdollahi Aliabadi, commander of the Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters of Iran, declared this Tuesday that the Iranian armed forces will continue the war “until total victory.” The statement, broadcast by Iranian state television, came on the 25th day of the conflict unleashed by the joint military operation of the United States and Israel against the Islamic Republic, and coincided with the appointment of a new national security chief with a markedly military profile.
Abdollahi Aliabadi stated that the Iranian armed forces are “proud, victorious and firm in defending the integrity of Iran.” The general did not specify what conditions would constitute that victory, but according to Al Jazeera, the statement aimed to warn against any concessions in a possible negotiation with Washington. The same statement called the United States a “hollow” nation and assured that Trump is now seeking the help of third countries to get out of a conflict that, according to the Iranian version, he can no longer control.
The general’s words come at a time of maximum diplomatic tension. Trump extended the deadline of his ultimatum by five days for Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, after announcing that Washington and Iran had reached “important points of agreement” and that April 9 would be the deadline to end the war. Iran flatly rejected that version. The speaker of the Iranian Parliament, Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, published on X that “no negotiations have been held with the United States”, and added that “fake news is used to manipulate financial and oil markets”.
The Iranian chancellery acknowledged having received messages from “friendly countries” transmitting an American request for negotiations, but denied that these had taken place. At the same time, the United States Armed Forces Central Command confirmed that the bombings on Iranian military targets did not stop despite Trump’s announcement. The distinction between energy facilities and military infrastructure proved decisive: the pause announced by the president did not reach the latter.
In that context, Tehran also announced the appointment of
Mohammad Bagher Zolghadr as the new secretary of the Supreme National Security Council, the main coordinating body for the country’s defense, intelligence, and foreign strategy policies.
Zolghadr is a hardline veteran of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard who replaces
Ali Larijani, who died in an Israeli airstrike last week. His appointment was confirmed by the deputy director of communications for the presidency, Mehdi Tabatabaei, who indicated that the appointment had the approval of
Supreme Leader Mojtaba Jamenei and was formalized by decree of President Masoud Pezeshkian.
Larijani was considered one of the most influential men in Iran and one of the few non-clerical leaders seen by international observers as a viable interlocutor for any negotiation with Trump.
He was shot down by Israel a few weeks after taking office, to which he had returned after the 12-day war between Iran and Israel. His death also eliminated a figure with the capacity to build bridges between the military apparatus and diplomatic channels, a function that Zolghadr will hardly be able to assume.
Zolghadr is considered a product of the internal system of the Revolutionary Guard, with a trajectory rooted in security, intelligence, and operational command rather than diplomacy. His previous positions include Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the Revolutionary Guard and Deputy Interior Minister, responsible for internal security. He was appointed by Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in 2007 to lead the Basij, the paramilitary force in charge of suppressing internal dissent.
In parallel with the internal movements of Tehran, several countries are acting as mediators:
Pakistan, Turkey, Egypt, and Oman are participating in diplomatic efforts, which seek both a ceasefire and to guarantee the passage of ships through the Strait of Hormuz. Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif publicly offered to host talks between Washington and Tehran, while Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed his support for de-escalation and urged that the strait remain open.
The appointment of Zolghadr and Abdollahi Aliabadi’s statement draw a line:
Tehran seems to have no intention of moderating its stance under pressure.
