Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, stated on Wednesday that the only solution for the region is the destruction of Israel, and that the armed confrontation must expand beyond Gaza.

Meanwhile, revolutionary guards announced new missiles which could destroy Israel’s Iron Dome missile defense system.

Fars News Agency, a media outlet run by the Iranian state, reported today that Khamenei addressed the conflict in Gaza in a meeting with Iranian college students.

“These crimes which are beyond imagination and show the true nature of the wolfish and child killer regime, which the only solution is its destruction,” the ayatollah declared to his audience. “However, until that time, the expansion of the armed resistance of the Palestinians of the West Bank is the only way to confront this wild regime.”

Khamenei then criticized America, claiming its defense of Israel is “shameful,” and suggested that its support affects Iran’s behavior towards America.

“The anti-American and anti-West view in Iran is a logical view based on experience and a righteous calculation,” he said.

Referring to Israel, Khamenei added, “This event is a sample of the ‘violent policies with iron fist’ which the fake and illegitimate regime [Israel] in its 66 years of existence has repeatedly and proudly conducted.”

He then emphasized, “As said by Imam Khomeini [the founder of the Islamic Republic of Iran] Israel must be destroyed…However, until that time with the help of God for this cruel and murderous regime to be destroyed, strong confrontation with steadfast armed resistance is the only solution against this destructive regime.”

Khamenei then mocked Israel for looking for a ceasefire agreement, stating that Israel is powerless against the resistance of Hamas, and once again, strongly attacked America for supporting Israel.

“We believe that the West Bank needs to be armed just like Gaza and those interested in the future of Palestine must become active in this field [guerrilla warfare] so that the suffering of the Palestinian people through their strength and their weakness due to the Zionist regime is reduced,” he said. “Some Western countries including America and filthy England defend with clarity the crimes that no ordinary person would. The President of America in the face of these child killings, destruction, torture and suffering of the people in Gaza, with a comical logic states that Israel has the right to defend itself! Don’t the Palestinians have the right to defend their lives and security?”

The Islamic regime has long trained and armed Hezbollah and Palestinian forces for attacks against Israel. In reference to further arming Palestinians, the speaker of the regime’s Parliament, Ali Larijani, said in a statement Wednesday, “The clear need of Palestine is its need to weapons and basic necessities and Iran plays an important role in meeting the clear needs of the Palestinian people.”

In related news, the revolutionary guard revealed that they have made missiles capable of penetrating Israel’s Iron Dome.

The missile, named “Hormoz 1,” is claimed to be the first anti-radar ballistic missile to be able to penetrate and destroy missile defense systems such as the Iron Dome and America’s Patriot missile system. The missile has a speed of Mach 5 and can pinpoint a target from a very long-distance. The guards claim the missile can now destroy the Iron Dome, as well as any patriot missile defense system, and that the missile could be used to attack the radar systems of U.S. vessels and carriers in the Persian Gulf.

In continuation of negotiations in Geneva between the P5+1 and Iran, a four month extension to the original agreement was agreed upon to find a peaceful solution to Iran’s nuclear program. In return for the agreement on the extension, the Islamic regime will receive $2.8 Billion dollars in six installments. The Islamic regime had received $7 Billion after the negotiated agreement in November 2013 with a six month deadline to finalize the agreement, but has so far refused to back down from its demand to continue developing its nuclear program.

A recent report suggests that the Islamic Republic has yet to address the concerns of the International Atomic Agency on work developing detonators used as an explosive device for atomic bombs. The regime, which originally denied such work, has stated the experiment as for civilian purposes.

Reza Kahlili is a pseudonym for a former CIA operative in Iran’s Revolutionary Guards and author of the award winning book “A Time to Betray” (Simon & Schuster, 2010). He serves on the Task Force on National and Homeland Security and the advisory board of the Foundation for Democracy in Iran (FDI)

