Iran’s supreme leader on gave a warning Thursday to Israel and the United States that Tehran’s response will be harsh should its archenemies choose a military strike against Iran over the country’s controversial nuclear program.Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said that anybody who takes up the idea of an attack on Iran, should get ready to get a strong slap and an iron fist by the Iranian armed forces.
Khamenei spoke 2 days after the U.N. atomic agency released a report that for the first time stated that Iran is suspected of conducting secret experiments whose only purpose is the development of nuclear arms.
The report was the International Atomic Energy Agency’s most absolute so far in making the suggestion that Iran is using the cover of a peaceful nuclear program to produce atomic weaponry. Iran is insisting that it is pursuing nuclear energy for peaceful purposes.
On Wednesday, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad criticized the IAEA report, defiantly stating that Tehran would not retreat “an iota” from its nuclear program, including enriching uranium — a potential path to making a nuclear bomb.
The U.S. and its allies are worried that a nuclear-armed Iran could touch off a nuclear arms race among rival states, which include Saudi Arabia, and directly threaten Israel. Four rounds of U.N. sanctions so far have not been successful in getting Tehran to halt its enrichment program.
Israel looks at Iran as an existential threat, citing Ahmadinejad’s calls for Israel’s destruction and Iran’s support for Arab militant groups. Before the IAEA report’s release on Tuesday, Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak stated that without effective sanctions, Israel would not take any option “off the table,” a reference to possible military action.
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