Khamenei Urges ‘National Unity,’ Warns of ‘Rifts’

A picture published by Khamenei's website from his annual speech to army leaders in Tehran, Iran
A picture published by Khamenei's website from his annual speech to army leaders in Tehran, Iran
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Khamenei Urges ‘National Unity,’ Warns of ‘Rifts’

A picture published by Khamenei's website from his annual speech to army leaders in Tehran, Iran
A picture published by Khamenei's website from his annual speech to army leaders in Tehran, Iran

Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei called for national unity, accusing “enemies” of seeking to sow discord among Iranian officials. At the same time, Khamenei criticized those trying to raise women’s issues and generational differences.

In an annual address to Iran Air Force commanders, Khamenei claimed that the main target of enemies was to bring Iran to its knees and to destroy it by stoking rifts and suspicion.

Khamenei described “national unity” as an essential requirement for the present time.

Likening national unity to a dam and robust wall standing against the enemy, Khamenei said this unity has played a significant role in the victory of the 1979 revolution and its progress in past years.

“Today, we need to increase this (national) unity as much as possible,” said Khamenei.

“There is nothing wrong with political disagreements, differences in viewpoints, and natural disagreements, but they must not end in slander,” added the Iranian leader.

Khamenei accused the US of trying to bring his nation to its knees despite a letter he received from former US President Barack Obama.

“Of course, they (enemies) say the opposite, as the president of the US wrote to me about 15 years ago, saying explicitly that ‘we do not intend to change your government.’ But we had reports at the same time that they were planning in their centers to destroy the Islamic Republic.”

Khamenei linked attempts to eliminate the Iranian regime to its regional role and said that his country has managed to take a strategic and important region out of the grasp of the “enemies.”

The leader’s speech comes days after the Iranian judiciary announced he had approved amnesty for tens of thousands of prisoners, including some detainees from recent anti-regime protests.

Demonstrations have been rocking Iran in the wake of the death of a young Kurdish woman, Mahsa Amini, last September. Amini died in the custody of Iran's notorious morality police that took her in for violating Iran’s strict dress code.



International Criminal Court Refers Hungary to Its Oversight Body for Failing to Arrest Netanyahu 

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, left, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, right, shake hands after a press statement at the Carmelite Monastery in the Buda Castle in Budapest, Hungary, April 3, 2025. (AP) 
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, left, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, right, shake hands after a press statement at the Carmelite Monastery in the Buda Castle in Budapest, Hungary, April 3, 2025. (AP) 
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International Criminal Court Refers Hungary to Its Oversight Body for Failing to Arrest Netanyahu 

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, left, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, right, shake hands after a press statement at the Carmelite Monastery in the Buda Castle in Budapest, Hungary, April 3, 2025. (AP) 
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, left, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, right, shake hands after a press statement at the Carmelite Monastery in the Buda Castle in Budapest, Hungary, April 3, 2025. (AP) 

A panel of judges at the International Criminal Court reported Hungary to the court’s oversight organization for failing to arrest Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu when he visited Budapest in April, saying the move undercut the court's ability to bring suspects to justice.

The Israeli leader received a red carpet welcome from Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán during a state visit, in defiance of an ICC arrest warrant. Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant are accused of crimes against humanity in connection with the war in Gaza.

Israel is not a member of the court and staunchly rejects the charges.

In a filing released late Thursday, the three-judge panel wrote that “the obligation to cooperate was sufficiently clear to Hungary” and the failure to arrest Netanyahu “severely undermines the Court’s ability to carry out its mandate.”

The ICC has no police force and relies on countries around the world to execute arrest warrants.

The court's oversight body, the Assembly of States Parties has limited powers to sanction Hungary. It will consider the next steps during its annual meeting in December.

The Hungarian leader, regarded by critics as an autocrat and the EU’s most intransigent spoiler in the bloc’s decision-making, has defended his decision to not arrest Netanyahu. During the visit, Orbán said his country’s commitment to the ICC was “ half-hearted ” and began the process to withdraw Hungary from the court.

Orbán signed the Rome Statute, the treaty which created the court, in 2001 during his first term as prime minister.

The court dismissed arguments from Hungary that Parliament never incorporated the court’s statute into Hungarian law, writing “it was Hungary’s responsibility to ensure that such legislation was in place.”

The decision comes as Gaza’s population of more than 2 million Palestinians is in a catastrophic humanitarian crisis, now relying largely on the limited aid allowed into the territory.

Netanyahu and Gallant are accused of using “starvation as a method of warfare” by restricting humanitarian aid, and of intentionally targeting civilians in Israel’s campaign against Hamas in Gaza.