Coalition base in Erbil targeted by Iran-linked drone attack - Al Hadath

"We've been hitting them (Iran leaders) awfully hard. I don't know if you can possibly get hit harder. These are thugs, and animals, and horrible people," President Donald Trump told reporters on Friday.

"I'm not surprised, they executed 3 young people for protesting," he added.

US President Donald Trump on Friday sent his best wishes to Americans celebrating Nowruz, expressing hope that the Persian New Year would advance “peace and human dignity” amid the Iran war, which he described as a “righteous mission.”

“Nowruz marks the start of the Persian New Year, celebrates the arrival of spring, and acknowledges the eternal triumph of light over darkness. This ancient holiday also serves as a yearly reflection of the power of new beginnings,” he said in a statement.

“As we continue our righteous mission in the Middle East, I pray that this Nowruz will promote the causes of peace and human dignity on American shores and across the world, and that the year ahead will be filled with many blessings,” he added, ending his message with “Nowruz Pirouz!”

A written Nowruz message attributed to Iran's new Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei was released on Friday without any video or audio, as his continued absence fuels questions about his condition and whereabouts.

The message urged domestic media to “seriously refrain from highlighting weaknesses,” emphasizing the need to maintain internal cohesion.

It also said that Iranian armed forces and the so-called “resistance” front were not involved in recent attacks on Turkey and Oman.

"The attacks carried out in Turkey and Oman — both of which have good relations with Iran — were in no way conducted by the armed forces of the Islamic Republic or other forces of the Resistance Front," the message reads.

He said this is a ploy by the “Zionist enemy,” using false-flag tactics to create division between the Islamic Republic and its neighbors, and that it may also occur in some other countries.

In another part of the message, Khamenei described Iran’s January protests a “coup,” praising the Islamic Republic's supporters for suppressing it.

Iranian exiled Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi said in a message marking Nowruz, the start of the Persian New Year 1405, that Iranians would “bury this Zahhak-like regime once and for all” in the coming year.

“Today we begin our new year in the midst of a patriotic struggle, with the memory of all Iran’s brave and immortal sons,” he said.

Pahlavi promised the families of slain protesters that “we will turn the new year into the year of victory for Iran’s Lion and Sun revolution.”

The Pentagon is sending three warships and thousands of additional Marines to the Middle East, even as US President Donald Trump says he will not deploy troops on the ground in Iran, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing US officials.

The deployment includes roughly 2,200 to 2,500 Marines from the USS Boxer amphibious ready group and the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit, the report said.

It marks a second major deployment in a week, following the dispatch of the USS Tripoli and the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit to the region, according to the report.