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| Pezeshkian's Apology Lands as Drones Are Still in the Air |
In a moment that exposed the deep fractures within Iran's wartime leadership, President Masoud Pezeshkian delivered a startling public apology on Saturday to neighboring countries struck by Iranian missiles and drones — even as fresh explosions were being reported across the Gulf within hours of his address.
Speaking exactly one week into a war that began with the killing of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in U.S.-Israeli airstrikes on February 28, Pezeshkian delivered his message as part of a tripartite leadership council that has been attempting to govern Iran through the chaos of relentless bombardment.
In his remarks, the president explained that with commanders and the supreme leader killed in the opening strikes, Iran's armed forces had essentially been firing at will—acting without orders, defending the homeland as they saw fit without centralized direction. It was a striking admission — a sitting head of state confessing that his own military had been operating beyond his reach.
The response inside Iran was swift and scathing. Political figures openly questioned the apology, with one critic writing that an apology only happens when a mistake has occurred and that Pezeshkian's statement showed no sign of authority.
Analysts echoed that assessment. Al Jazeera's correspondent noted that the IRGC, now fully in charge of strategic decisions, would decide whether to attack or not — and that Pezeshkian's message to regional countries carried no real weight on the battlefield.
The limits of his authority were laid bare almost immediately. Just hours after his address, Dubai International Airport was struck by an Iranian drone, and Qatar reported intercepting an Iranian ballistic missile.
Trump wasted no time responding, posting on Truth Social that Iran had "apologized and surrendered to its Middle East neighbors," claiming the pledge came only because of relentless U.S. and Israeli pressure.
Pezeshkian, for his part, fired back at demands for unconditional surrender—calling it, with visible defiance, a dream Washington should take to its grave.
