IRGC Commander Says US Miscalculated Iran War, Underestimated National Resilience

Javani said Washington had pursued a policy of maximum pressure on Iran since before Donald Trump’s presidency, but these efforts had failed to weaken the country’s resolve. He attributed Iran’s resilience to its national identity and the cultural and religious significance of martyrdom. According to Javani, threats, military pressure and attacks on state institutions had not produced the political collapse anticipated by Iran’s adversaries. He said the Iranian nation’s response demonstrated the limits of strategies based on pressure and destabilization.

Javani also pointed to what he described as 226 consecutive nights of public gatherings across Iran, calling the sustained participation a phenomenon rarely witnessed in human history. He said people had continued to gather in the streets despite difficult weather conditions and bombardment, describing their presence as evidence of national determination. The US-Israeli military campaign against Iran began on February 28, 2026, with joint strikes that, according to the report, killed Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, several senior military commanders and civilians. The attacks also targeted Iranian nuclear facilities, schools and hospitals.