Tehran prayer leader says 'foes' would face new Iranian missiles
An Iranian senior cleric said Iran’s adversaries would face new missile strikes and a wider regional war if they attacked the country.
Iran’s armed forces were “more prepared than ever” and threatened disruption to shipping through Bab al-Mandab if the Strait of Hormuz were targeted, Mohammad Javad Haj Ali-Akbari said during Tehran Friday prayers.
He also said attacks on Iran’s infrastructure would trigger retaliation against the “enemy’s supporters” across the region.
A member of parliament’s cultural committee said lawmakers would approve a proposal offering a reward to anyone carrying out clerics’ fatwa against Donald Trump after the measure completes the legal process.
Hassanali Akhlaghi-Amiri told Didban Iran the proposal would “certainly” pass parliament.
He made the remarks while security concerns had forced parliament to continue holding sessions online.
The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy said 35 ships crossed the Strait of Hormuz over the past 24 hours after obtaining permits and coordinating with IRGC naval forces.
The IRGC Navy’s public relations office said the vessels included oil tankers, container ships and other commercial vessels.
It said the ships passed through the strait with IRGC security coordination.
The statement said that despite what it called insecurity caused by US military action in the Strait of Hormuz, the IRGC Navy had created “a safe waterway” for shipping and the continuation of global trade.
A senior adviser to the UAE president warned that any Iranian control over the Strait of Hormuz would set a serious precedent and risk being politicized by Tehran.
“Any control over the Strait of Hormuz will set a serious precedent,” Anwar Gargash said, adding that it would be “politicized in Iran’s hands.”
Gargash said any change in the strait would have serious consequences, including for Europe, because of the waterway’s role in energy and trade.
Gargash said the UAE had learned that Iran was capable of using “any weapon that it has in its hand,” and that Iran’s nuclear program had moved from being the UAE’s “second or third worry” to its first.
He said another round of fighting between the United States and Iran would “only complicate things,” adding that the UAE wanted a political solution but was concerned any deal could create new complications in the region.
“Finding a diplomatic way forward is important,” he said. “It should not be at the expense of creating further complications in the future.”
He also said the United States had become more central to every Persian Gulf country’s calculations, calling the link with Washington “a spinal cord” in national defense.
On Europe’s role, Gargash said any European initiative on Hormuz was designed to take effect only once the conflict was over, but said it remained unclear what it would do after that point.
He added that the UAE was losing out under OPEC production limits and had been thinking for three years about leaving the group, saying the country sees itself close to “the autumn of the hydrocarbon age” and wants to use its production capacity while it still can.
Iran’s internet blackout has entered its 84th day, with international networks largely cut off for more than 1,992 hours, internet monitor NetBlocks said.
NetBlocks said each passing hour was widening social and economic divides, as contact with the outside world remained gated by “status, compliance and privilege.”
Rising inflation in Iran has pushed households to buy even basic food items in installments, reshaping consumer habits.
Official figures published this year showed point-to-point inflation climbing above 73%, sharply increasing the cost of household essentials compared with the previous year. Food prices rose particularly fast, with some staples more than doubling in price.
The shift has extended installment payments beyond traditionally expensive products such as refrigerators and washing machines to groceries and supermarket packages, according to local media reports.
Chain stores and smaller retailers now advertise food, hygiene products and household supplies with payment plans spread over several months.
File photo of shoppers browsing goods inside a supermarket in Iran.
“When even basic necessities are sold in installments, it clearly reflects the pressure inflation has placed on household finances,” Tehran-based Eghtesad News wrote in a report published on Thursday.
Second-hand market expands
The inflation surge has also accelerated demand for second-hand appliances, furniture and electronics as many households move away from buying new goods outright.
A Tehran mother identified only as Maryam told the outlet she bought a used refrigerator for roughly half the price of a new one after concluding the retail cost was no longer manageable.
“It is better to take some risk and buy second-hand than pay the heavy cost of a new product all at once,” she said.
Negin, a university student whose classes are now held online rather than in person, needed a laptop to continue her studies. Faced with soaring prices, she settled for a lightly used second-hand laptop. “This option allowed me to continue my studies without taking out a loan,” she said.
File photo of second-hand household appliances displayed for sale in Iran.
Vendors in electronics and appliance markets also reported higher demand for used goods, with some sellers describing increases of between 40% and 60% compared with previous years.
Food and housing costs squeeze budgets
Economists and local observers say the change reflects deeper structural pressure on household budgets as spending on food, housing, utilities and services consumes a growing share of monthly income.
Annual inflation has surpassed 53%, according to official data, while prices for dairy, meat, rice, cooking oil and eggs have climbed sharply.
The report said many consumers now view installment purchases and second-hand goods not as cheaper alternatives, but as the only practical way to maintain daily living standards under prolonged inflationary pressure.
