Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, Iran’s new supreme leader, has called for revenge for his slain father, former Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, assassinated by U.S.-Israeli forces.

In a written statement broadcast on state TV on Saturday, he said, “We pledge to avenge the blood of the martyred leader and all the martyrs of these two wars from the criminal and disgraced killers.” 

Mr Khamenei, who has not been seen since the attack that killed his father, stated that the revenge mission “depends neither on my personal existence nor on that of other officials. Whether we are present or not, it will come to pass.”

The supreme leader’s statement comes amid the funeral ceremonies of his father, who was killed in a coordinated strike by the U.S. and Israeli forces on February 28. 

Mourners at the former supreme leader’s funeral displayed banners with the inscription: “Hey Trump, we will kill you.”

An Israeli intelligence agency had revealed Iran is hatching a fresh plot to assassinate the American president. 

Meanwhile, Mr Trump said he has ordered the U.S. forces to destroy Iran if he is assassinated.