Tehran erupted in diplomatic fury on Tuesday as Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi delivered a scathing rebuttal to US Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s recent claims. Araghchi dismissed Rubio’s assertions of an imminent Iranian threat as nothing more than a fabricated excuse, pointing the finger squarely at Israel for dragging both American and Iranian blood into the fray.
Rubio had justified the US strikes on Iran during a Monday press briefing, revealing that intelligence indicated Israel was poised to act independently. Fearing retaliatory attacks on US forces in the region, the Trump administration preemptively launched operations. ‘We knew Israel was about to move,’ Rubio told reporters. ‘If we hadn’t acted first, the damage to our troops would have been far worse.’
In a pointed X post, Araghchi laid bare what he called the undeniable truth: ‘Mr. Rubio has admitted what we all knew – America fought Israel’s war on its own accord. There was never any threat from Iran.’ He went further, holding Israel accountable for the deaths on both sides. ‘Shedding the blood of both Americans and Iranians is Israel’s doing. The American people deserve better.’
The exchange comes amid escalating tensions following Israel’s Saturday strike in Tehran, which US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth confirmed targeted a meeting attended by Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and other top officials. Intelligence reports placed Khamenei at the site, resulting in significant casualties.
Rubio maintained that while the Trump administration would welcome the end of the Khamenei regime, the current military objectives remain focused elsewhere. This back-and-forth underscores the volatile alliances and high-stakes calculations defining the Middle East conflict, with Iran vowing no retreat from its stance.