Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei vowed on Wednesday that his country would show no mercy towards Israel's rulers, hours after US President Donald Trump demanded Tehran's "unconditional surrender".
"We must give a strong response to the terrorist Zionist regime. We will show the Zionists no mercy," Khamenei posted on X.
In an another X post, Khamenei wrote, "the battle begins," amid reports suggesting that Trump was seriously considering joining the war on Iran and launching a strike against its nuclear facilities.
Khamenei's remarks came hours after Trump demanded the Islamic republic's "unconditional surrender". He also boasted that the United States could easily assassinate Iran's supreme leader.
"We know exactly where the so-called 'Supreme Leader' is hiding. He is an easy target, but is safe there -- We are not going to take him out (kill!), at least not for now," Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.
The US president insists Washington has played no part in ally Israel's bombing campaign, but also warned Iran his patience is wearing thin as the conflict enters a sixth day.
Early on Wednesday, Iran said it fired hypersonic missiles at Israel in the latest round of overnight strikes.
Israeli warplanes targeted the Iranian capital before dawn Wednesday after the military issued a warning for civilians to leave one district for their safety.
The Israeli military later said it struck weapons manufacturing sites and a facility used to make centrifuges in Tehran.
Iran told residents of Tel Aviv to prepare for an attack, with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps claiming its hypersonic Fattah-1 missiles were "repeatedly shaking the shelters" in the commercial hub.
"The 11th wave of the proud Operation Honest Promise 3 using Fattah-1 missiles" was carried out, the Guards said in a statement broadcast on state television.
Hypersonic missiles travel at more than five times the speed of sound and can manoeuvre mid-flight, making them harder to track and intercept.
Iran also sent a "swarm of drones" towards Israel, where the army said it intercepted two over the Dead Sea area.
World powers have scrambled for an offramp, hoping to prevent the conflict from spiralling into a region-engulfing war.
In separate phone calls with his Iranian counterpart and US envoy Steve Witkoff on Tuesday night, Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty urged a diplomatic solution.
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