Iran’s supreme leader says they delivered ‘hard slap’ to US, as he addresses nation

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran’s supreme leader, will speak within the next few minutes in a video message, marking his first message since the US announced a ceasefire between Iran and Israel.

The message comes hours before US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth is due to hold a news conference, where he’ll give an update on the impact of US strikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities over the weekend.

US President Donald Trump, writing on Truth Social, says the “major” update will be delivered from the Pentagon at 08:00 EST (13:00 BST), when Hegseth will be joined by military representatives.

“The News Conference will prove both interesting and
irrefutable,” Trump adds.

Speaking from a Nato summit yesterday, Hegseth was emphatic that US strikes had significantly diminished Tehran’s nuclear capabilities.

But earlier reports quoting US intelligence sources suggested the strikes had only set Iran’s nuclear programme back by months and key components had not been destroyed.

Stick with us as we bring you the latest updates on this story.