DUBAI, 26 May. /TASS/. Iran’s armed forces stand fully prepared to carry out a fresh missile strike on Israel if the Jewish state tries to use force against the Islamic republic, Iranian Army Commander-in-Chief Abdolrahim Mousavi stated.
"Since criminals, baby killers and fools are currently ruling there [in Israel], I wouldn’t put anything past them. If they are itching for another ‘True Promise’ (Iranian designation for operations to launch missile strikes against Israel in April and October last year - TASS), we will gladly oblige and follow through on our previous promises," the Tasnim news agency quoted him as saying.
The military commander believes that as Israel’s military resources are tied up elsewhere, it doesn’t have the available firepower to deal a meaningful blow against Iran. The Islamic republic, meanwhile, is capable of "challenging" Israel and its allies, Mousavi stressed.
On May 21, CNN reported, citing sources in US ruling circles, that Israel was preparing to strike Iran’s nuclear infrastructure. According to these sources, the probability of such an attack has increased significantly in recent months. It is possible that Israel will attempt to project strength in order to pressure Tehran into making concessions during negotiations with Washington, the TV channel pointed out.
The US and Iran have held five rounds of talks on settling differences around Tehran’s nuclear program with Oman’s mediation, with the latest of them taking place in Rome on May 23. Omani Foreign Minister Badr Al Busaidi said after the consultations that some progress had been made, though there is still a ways to go. His Iranian counterpart Abbas Araghchi noted that Tehran and Washington are preparing for a new round of talks and hope to achieve positive results in one or two meetings.