As renewed attacks between Iran and the US expand into Iraq and Yemen, the Hamshahri daily, which has close ties to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), has dedicated its front page to a report on the force's speedboats in the Gulf.
On Wednesday, the daily described the boats as the "winning card in the Persian Gulf" and said they are one of the main elements of Iran's deterrence against an expansion of US attacks. "The fleet has become one of the most complex challenges facing American forces in the Persian Gulf over the past two decades by relying on the 'swarm attack' tactic. It has also served as Iran's strategic tool in the Strait of Hormuz over the past five months," Hamshahri wrote.
According to the report, Iran's naval strategy is based on developing small, high-speed, low-cost boats in large numbers. Rather than competing directly with larger fleets, the strategy aims to increase the enemy's costs and limit its freedom of action.
On the role of the boats in keeping the Strait of Hormuz closed, Hamshahri added: "The combination of speedboats, naval mines, cruise and ballistic missiles, and drones has completed the puzzle of Iran's strategic encirclement of the Strait of Hormuz."
Brigadier General Hossein Alaei, the first commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Navy and a former Iranian defence official, has joined political figures calling for an end to the war with the United States, saying Iran's true victory lies in restoring peace and stability.
Alaei, who served as a senior IRGC commander during the Iran-Iraq War (1980–1988), commented on the conflicts launched against Iran by the United States and Israel since June 2025.
"In war, while it is true that Iran defends itself, stands firm, and strikes back at its enemy, the very existence of war is to the detriment of the Iranian people," he said.
The former IRGC commander also criticized the collapse of the memorandum of understanding (MoU) between Iran and the United States. He described the agreement as a complete victory for Iran and a defeat for Israel. "In this agreement, we gave up virtually nothing," Alaei said.
"The US believes it has stripped, damaged and destroyed Iran's nuclear program. The maximum we have conceded is that we will discuss the nuclear issue in the future, while from the beginning Iran's position was not to possess nuclear weapons."
He also said the agreement had put pressure on Israel to halt its military strikes on Lebanon. "Israel wanted to strike Lebanon every day; through this agreement, we stopped Israel's daily attacks on Lebanon. This is a very big victory," he said.
While hardline factions in Iran have called for an end to all negotiations with the United States and for the war to continue since military clashes resumed on July 7, some figures from the older generation of the IRGC, including Alaei, are advocating an end to the fighting.