US President Donald Trump announced that any decision to end the ongoing war with Iran will be made jointly with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Meanwhile, Iranian state media mocked Trump's remarks, framing him as subservient to Israel as tensions rise over the Assembly of Experts' appointment of Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei as Iran's new Supreme Leader.
In an interview with the Times of Israel, US President Donald Trump stated that a decision to end the war with Iran will be made jointly and in consultation with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. According to the Saudi-funded, anti-Tehran broadcaster Al Arabiya Farsi, Trump noted that while Netanyahu will have a consultative role, the US president will have the final say at the right time. Western-based DW Persian reported that Trump justified the joint military campaign by stating, "We worked together to destroy a country that wanted to destroy Israel." White House spokesperson Karoline Leavitt also recently indicated that Washington expects the conflict to last another four to six weeks, according to Al Arabiya Farsi.
Iranian domestic and state-aligned media heavily criticized Trump's statements, framing his strategy as being dictated by Israel. The mainstream Iranian news aggregator آخرین خبر (Akharin Khabar) ridiculed the US president as being in the illusion of ending the war; subservient to Netanyahu's orders!. The hardline, military-affiliated کانال اخبار سپاه پاسداران 🏴 (IRGC News Channel) explicitly echoed this framing, stating Trump confirmed he is at Netanyahu's beck and call. Furthermore, the hardline state-run فارس بینالملل و سیاست خارجی (Fars News International) pushed back against Trump's claims in a separate Fox News interview where he boasted of dealing an unprecedentedly hard blow to Iran. Fars News argued that at least 8 American soldiers have been killed since the war began—a casualty figure they claim is highly censored by the US.
The discussions regarding the war coincide with a historic power transition in Tehran. The Assembly of Experts officially announced Ayatollah Seyyed Mojtaba Khamenei as the third Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic. According to DW Persian, this selection was driven by pressure from the Revolutionary Guards, and Trump previously warned on ABC News that a new leader would not last long without White House approval. When asked by the Times of Israel about Mojtaba Khamenei's appointment, Trump simply responded, "We'll see what happens," a quote widely circulated by Iranian outlets, including the pro-reformist حامیان پزشکیان (Pezeshkian Supporters) channel in their coverage of the transition. The IRGC News Channel further reported that Trump expressed he was "not happy" about the appointment during his Fox News appearance.
Trump's remarks also touched on regional security and global energy markets. Addressing the rising cost of fuel, Fars News International highlighted what they described as Trump's desperate tone when he suggested that commercial ships must show courage to cross the Strait of Hormuz because there is nothing to fear. Fars framed this as a stark contradiction and a retreat from his previous promises to have the US military actively escort oil tankers and commercial ships through the Persian Gulf.
Sources exhibit starkly contrasting editorial lines. Western and Saudi-aligned channels (DW Persian, Al Arabiya Farsi) emphasize the cooperation between the US and Israel and the vulnerability of the new Iranian leadership. Conversely, Iranian domestic channels (Fars News, IRGC News Channel, Akharin Khabar) utilize loaded rhetoric, translating Trump's collaboration with Netanyahu as him being 'subservient' or 'taking orders' from Israel, and characterizing his statements about ending the war as 'delusional' or an 'illusion'. Fars News actively inserts counter-narratives into its reporting of Trump's quotes, such as highlighting unverified US military casualties to undermine his claims of victory.