A famous proverb states: “It is better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak and remove all doubt.”

This can today be applied to Ali Larijani, secretary of the Supreme National Security Council of Iran, who on Sunday addressed the countries of the region in a post on X, saying: “We do not believe in, nor do we intend, to attack you. However, when the bases located in your countries are used against us, and when the United States relies on these forces to carry out operations in the region, then we will target those bases.”

This suggests that Larijani is either detached from the reality of the crimes committed by his government’s forces or he is so delusional that he mistook five-star hotels in Dubai — where there are no US bases — for American or Israeli five-star generals when wondering who to retaliate against.

Iran has unfortunately lost any sympathy or solidarity it could have garnered through its indiscriminate response to the weekend’s attacks carried out by Israel and the US.

Even Tehran’s closest regional friends, the Omanis, who until a few days ago were negotiating........

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