Tehran, March 1 -- Senior Iranian official Ali Larijani on Sunday warned of a "far more crushing response" against the United States and Israel following what Iranian media described as the martyrdom of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.

Tasnim News Agency reported that Larijani said the Iranian nation had thwarted what he described as US and Israeli plans through unity and resilience. He stated that constitutional provisions would guide the country during the absence of leadership.

Referring to Article 110 of Iran's Constitution, Larijani explained that if the country is without a leader, the President, the Head of the Judiciary, and one jurist member of the Constitutional Council, selected by the Expediency Discernment Council, would tempor...