Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi replied via his X (Twitter) account in English to recent statements by Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu. According to ISNA, Araghchi addressed the U.S. and Israel, saying, "The last time you wanted to 'finish the job,' Iran came out stronger. Do you want to try again? Go ahead, but be careful; we have unfinished business too."
According to the full text carried by Ettelaat and Donya-ye Eqtesad from the same post, Araghchi continued: "Netanyahu is dragging America into another war to escape prison, regardless of the damage it will cause to Israel or even the U.S. president." The post came as a response to a Khabaronline article headlined "Netanyahu declared: our goal is to destroy Iran." However, Khabaronline's actual reporting differs slightly from its headline: according to the article, citing Jamaran, Netanyahu's only directly quoted remark was that "no matter how severely Iran's government is struck, it will return and rebuild its nuclear and missile capacity"—the "destruction" framing appears to be Khabaronline's editorial choice, and Netanyahu's full remarks could not be independently verified.
How the Persian press covered it
| Source (orientation) | Headline / framing |
|---|---|
| Khabaronline (moderate conservative) | Used the headline "Our goal is to destroy Iran" but did not provide direct quotes supporting it in the article text |
| Donya-ye Eqtesad / Ettelaat (technocratic / moderate-traditionalist) | Carried Araghchi's English post in full without commentary or additional framing |
| ISNA (semi-official) | Presented both sides' statements within a "rhetoric vs. response" framework |
Context
Araghchi's phrase "we have unfinished business" echoes a theme Netanyahu has repeated since the war began: the Israeli prime minister did not explicitly frame regime change as a "guaranteed objective" after the February 2026 strikes, but spoke of Iran's leadership being "severely weakened" and potentially enabling change. Araghchi has not been a lone voice in this debate: he criticized Netanyahu as a "snake" in August, saying the Israeli leader was dragging Washington into conflict, and in early October called him "an indicted war criminal" fleeing accountability by prolonging hostilities. This pattern shows that the mutual recrimination and threats between the two leaders ongoing for months—this week's exchange is the latest installment.
This mutual escalation occurs in the same week Trump said he was keeping the option of "bunker-buster" bombs for Iran's nuclear sites on the table (Trump rejected nuclear weapons but kept "bunker-busters" on the table). The Assembly of Experts had also called that week for a "firm response" to U.S. threats (Assembly of Experts calls for "definite enforcement" of hijab and firm response to U.S. threats); Araghchi's post can be read as the foreign ministry's latest link in this chain of rhetoric.
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