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Iran Warns 'Tourist Destinations' Aren't Safe for Its Enemies

As Khamenei says enemies need to have their 'security' taken away
By Newser Editors and Wire Services
Posted Mar 20, 2026 9:56 AM CDT
Iran Warns 'Tourist Destinations' Aren't Safe for Its Enemies
Iranians attend the funeral procession of Iran's intelligence minister Esmail Khatib and, according to Iranian officials, his wife and daughter, in Tehran, Iran, Friday, March 20, 2026.   (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

Iran's top military spokesman warned Friday that "parks, recreational areas, and tourist destinations" worldwide won't be safe for Tehran's enemies. The threat from Gen. Abolfazl Shekarchi renewed concerns that Iran may revert to using militant attacks beyond the Middle East as a pressure tactic, reports the AP. Friday's show of defiance came nearly three weeks into US-Israeli strikes that have killed a slew of Tehran's top leaders and hammered its weapons and energy industries.

The country's new Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei also released a rare statement, saying Iran's enemies need to have their "security" taken away. Khamenei hasn't been seen since he succeeded his father, the 86-year-old Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed in an Israeli airstrike on the first day of the war. US and Israeli leaders have said that weeks of strikes have decimated Iran's military. In Iran, many were marking the Nowruz holiday even as Israel said it had launched new strikes, and explosions were heard over Tehran. The Persian New Year, which coincides with the spring equinox, is a tradition observed across southwestern Asia that dates back thousands of years.

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