Araghchi blames ‘serpent’ Netanyahu for luring Washington into war on Iran

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has said that Tehran will respond decisively to further attacks following the US bombing of Larak Island, which killed and wounded Iranian civilians and soldiers. Speaking on Monday before travelling to Bishkek for a Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit, Pezeshkian said Iran “is not looking for war” but would “never sit still in the face of any aggression”. Iran “will give a decisive response to the aggressors” if attacked again, he said, according to the Fars news agency. “Instability and unrest in the region are not in the interest of any country and will challenge everyone,” he added. US forces bombed Larak Island on Sunday, the official state broadcaster IRIB reported. It marked Washington’s first attack on Iran since July and raised fears of another escalation in the Israeli-US war against the country. Read more: Araghchi blames ‘serpent’ Netanyahu for luring Washington into war on Iran An Iranian woman walks past an anti-US billboard at Enghelab Square in central Tehran on 3 August 2026 (Atta Kenare/AFP)