Regional tension over Iran’s nuclear capability is escalating, with Iranian officials threatening that their country will attack Israel and NATO missile defense installations in Turkey if Iran is attacked by Israel or the United States.
General Amir Ali Hajizadeh, head of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards aerospace division, warned Saturday that Iran would respond to any military action by the West. “Should we be threatened, we will target NATO’s missile defense shield in Turkey and then hit the next targets,” said Hajizadeh, according to Iran’s Mehr news agency. Iran says the shields, located 435 miles into Turkish territory, is in place to protect Israel from Iranian missiles.
Also on Saturday, Brigadier General Yadollah Javani said that Iran will not only repel attacks against it, but will issue counter attacks.
“If Israel fires a missile towards our nuclear or critical facilities, it should know that every inch of Israel, including its nuclear centers, are a target for our missiles and we have this capability today,” Javani said, according to Iranian state-owned PressTv.
Israel has ramped up insinuations that it would attack Iranian nuclear reactors following the release of a report this month by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) that Iranian nuclear facilities were working to build atomic weapons. Iran says the purpose of its nuclear program is to create energy.