‘Israel within Iran’s missile reach’
Sat, 28 Jun 2008 17:57:47

Top IRGC commander, Mohammad-Ali JafariA senior IRGC commander says Israel will not dare attack Iran as it is well within the range of the Islamic Republic’s missiles.

“The Islamic Republic of Iran’s defense capabilities today, in particular its missile power, enable it to repel any possible attack,” Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) Commander Major General Mohammad-Ali Jafari cautioned.

“Israel is located entirely within the reach of our missiles. Our missile power is such that the Zionist regime, despite all its capabilities, would not be able to confront us,” the top IRGC commander told the Iranian daily, Jam-e Jam, in an interview.

Maj. Gen. Jafari also argued that the United States and Israel would have to collaborate in order to engage in a military strike against Iran.

“It seems without the cooperation of the occupying regime of al-Quds, rhetoric cannot turn into action. Even though the US may believe it can unilaterally attack Iran, the US needs Israeli assistance,” he added.

“This fact would be a deterrent factor for our enemy given the numerous vulnerabilities of the Zionist regime,” Jafari continued.

“When a country comes under attack, it naturally uses all its capacities to confront the enemy,” he said in reference to the country’s ability to cut the stream of oil by closing the Strait of Hormuz.

“In case of an attack… oil prices will dramatically increase and this prevents the enemy from inching toward a military action against Iran,” the IRGC commander continued.

The US and Israel have recently stepped up their rhetoric against Iran and are believed to be preparing the public for a war against the oil-rich country.

Maj. Gen. Jafari’s remarks come after the recent release of a New York Times report quoting Pentagon officials as saying that over 100 Israeli F-16s and F-15s staged a maneuver over the eastern Mediterranean and Greece between May 28 and June 12.

As part of the maneuver, Israeli jets flew over 900 miles, roughly the distance from their airfields to a nuclear enrichment facility in the central Iranian city of Natanz.

On June 6, a day after the military exercise, Israeli deputy prime minister Shaoul Mofaz told the Yediot Aharonot that Tel Aviv would attack Iran if the country did not halt its nuclear activities.