Ali Akbar Velayati, a senior adviser to Iran's Supreme Leader, warned Wednesday evening that miscalculation in Beirut has exhausted patience and the order has been given. In a statement circulated via Iranian media, Velayati said launchers are being prepared and threatened to close the strategic straits of Hormuz and Bab el-Mandeb, claiming both arms would 'suffocate' Israel's economy. The statement is a significant rhetorical escalation but is currently reported from a single source.
Ali Akbar Velayati, a senior adviser to Iran's Supreme Leader, warned Wednesday evening that 'zero hour has arrived' and that launchers are being prepared, explicitly threatening to close the strategic Strait of Hormuz and Bab el-Mandeb strait to 'suffocate' Israel's economy. The statement, circulated via Iranian-affiliated Telegram channels, is the most explicit threat yet from a named Iranian official.
This warning builds on a series of escalating statements The Zioneer has tracked through the evening. At 20:45 Jerusalem, Iran's Supreme National Security Council warned of imminent retaliation for Israeli strikes on Hezbollah targets in Lebanon. At 23:05 Jerusalem, the first version of this thread reported Velayati's statement — at that point attributed broadly to a 'senior adviser' — followed within minutes by a version attributing it to an adviser of Iraqi cleric Moghtada al-Sadr, and then a version identifying the source as Velayati himself, with each iteration adding more specific detail about the straits threat. A subsequent version, also at 23:05 Jerusalem, referred to the adviser as Tomer Almagor, a political adviser to Mojtaba Khamenei, before being corrected back to Velayati. The thread thus reflects a rapid and confused attribution process across multiple channels, with the consistent element being the 'zero hour' language and the straits threat eventually converging on Velayati as the source.
The Zioneer previously reported, at 17:33 Jerusalem, that Iran's IRGC was reportedly preparing multiple responses to Israel after a plea from Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem, who warned Tehran of 'real danger' to the organization as IDF operations intensified. Background analysis published earlier on Wednesday laid out deterrence equations between Hezbollah, Israel, and Iran, with one analyst noting that Hezbollah, under Iranian direction, may be trying to breach the deterrence equation ahead of a potential US-Iran deal.
The statement remains reported from a single, unattributed source — no official Iranian news agency has published it, and the claim that launchers are 'entering position' cannot be independently confirmed. The 'zero hour' language does not specify a time frame for any potential strike or closure.
7 developments
- DevelopingIranian Supreme Leader advisor threatens to close Bab al-Mandeb Strait after Beirut strike
- DevelopingNabavian: US-Iran draft brings Oman into Strait of Hormuz management, crossing Khamenei's red line
- DevelopingKhamenei advisor: Iran will extend war to Indian Ocean if blockade continues
- StrongIran reportedly closes Strait of Hormuz as IDF braces for multi-day fighting
Source and signal
- Internal intake