Al-Monitor - "The White House is suffering from mental disability," said enraged Iranian President�Hassan Rouhani�June 25�in response to�new�US sanctions�targeting�the Islamic Republic's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and several other senior Iranian officials.


The punitive measures were approved by President�Donald Trump�as "a strong and proportionate response" to what he called "Iran�s increasingly provocative actions."�Last week, Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC)�shot down a US drone�over the Gulf of Oman near the Strait of Hormuz, saying the surveillance aircraft had violated its airspace, while Washington insisted the�Global Hawk drone was simply flying within international borders.


In a defiant gesture against Trump's move,�Rouhani praised�Iran's missile capabilities, expressing his gratitude to the IRGC for downing the sophisticated drone. He also noted that the latest US sanctions contradict�Trump's repeated�pushes�for negotiations. "By banning Iran's foreign minister, you once more proved that your claims about dialog are but a lie," Rouhani said, referring to US government plans that will further include in the same sanctions measures to target�Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif later this week.


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