North Korea Condemns US-Israeli Attack on Iran, Calls US "Gangster-like"

North Korea (DPRK) has condemned an attack against Iran carried out by the United States and Israel, describing the US as “gangster-like”.

According to Al-Jazeera, on Sunday 1 March 2026, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), the state news outlet, described the US-Israeli attack on Iran as “illegal aggression” and a violation of Iran’s national sovereignty.

A spokesman for North Korea’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said US involvement was “in line with” DPRK expectations. He characterised it as an inevitable outcome given the US’s “hegemonic and gangster-like” nature.

“Aggressive warfare by the US and Israel cannot be accepted under any circumstances,” the statement read.

The US termed the attack on Iran “Operation Epic Fury”. According to NBC News, US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth described the US military strike against Iran as the deadliest, most complex, and most precise air operation in history.

“The Iranian regime had an opportunity but refused to make a deal – and now they are bearing the consequences. For nearly fifty years, Iran has targeted and killed Americans, always seeking the most powerful weapons in the world to advance their radical objectives. Last night, unlike previous presidents, President Trump began to address this cancer,” Hegseth said in a post on X.

The attack killed Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and several other Iranian leaders. Iran has retaliated by launching missiles and drones against various US military bases in the Arabian Peninsula.