Leader Warns Enemies to Keep Away from Iran's Internal Affairs
Leader Warns Enemies to Keep Away from Iran's Internal Affairs
Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei once again lambasted the interfering remarks by certain western countries on Iran, warning them that they should wait for the Iranian nation's strong reaction if they don't stop meddling in the country's domestic affairs.
"Such governments should be careful with their hostile remarks and behavior, because the Iranian nation will show reaction (against such behavior)," Ayatollah Khamenei said, while addressing a public meeting to commemorate the birth anniversary of the Shiite Muslims' first Imam, Hazrat Ali Ibn-e Abi Taleb (PBUH), in Tehran on Monday.
"We will assess such governments' interfering remarks and behaviors and it will certainly have a negative impact on the Islamic Republic of Iran's future relations with them," the Leader reiterated.
The Islamic Republic has repeatedly condemned and cautioned certain western leaders, particularly Britain, about their remarks on Iran's internal affairs following the June 12 presidential election.
After incumbent President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was re-elected as the next president of the country with over 62% percent of the votes cast in Iran's 10th presidential election, supporters of his main rival Mir Hossein Mousavi - who rejected the results - took to the streets of Tehran and other cities in daily rallies.
Iran later accused the West of stoking the unrests, singling out Britain and the US for meddling. Iran expelled two British diplomats. London reciprocated the move and expelled two Iranian diplomats from Britain.
Ayatollah Khamenei further noted that the enemies are trying to sow seeds of discord among the Iranian nation through interference in the country's internal affairs.
"Even if the Islamic Republic officials come to disagreement with each other over certain issues, they will still stand united in resisting against enemies and preserving the country's independence. The enemy should know that it cannot create a gap within the Iranian nation," the Leader underscored.
"All of the leaders of the arrogant countries should know that in the event of enemy intervention, the Iranian nation, despite differences of opinion, will unite and become one single fist against them," Ayatollah Khamenei cautioned.
The remarks by the Iranian Leader also come after US Vice President Joe Biden said Washington would not stop Israel if it wants to bomb Iran.
Speculation that Israel could bomb Iran mounted after a big Israeli air drill in June 2008, when 100 Israeli F-16 and F-15 fighters reportedly took part in an exercise over the eastern Mediterranean and Greece, which was interpreted as a dress rehearsal for a possible attack on Iran's nuclear installations.
Israel and its close ally the United States accuse Iran of seeking a nuclear weapon, while they have never presented any corroborative document to substantiate their allegations. Both Washington and Tel Aviv possess advanced weapons of mass destruction, including nuclear warheads.
Iran vehemently denies the charges, insisting that its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes only. Tehran stresses that the country has always pursued a civilian path to provide power to the growing number of Iranian population, whose fossil fuel would eventually run dry.
Iran has stressed that it would target Israel and its worldwide interests in case it comes under attack by the Tel Aviv. Tehran has warned that in case of an attack by either the US or Israel, it will target 32 American bases in the Middle East and close the strategic Strait of Hormoz.
An estimated 40 percent of the world's oil supply passes through the waterway.
Meantime, a recent study by the Institute for Science and International Security (ISIS), a prestigious American think tank, has found that a military strike on Iran's nuclear facilities "is unlikely" to delay the country's program.
In a Sep. 11 report, the Washington Institute for the Near East Policy also said that in the two decades since the Iran-Iraq War, the Islamic Republic has excelled in naval capabilities and is able to wage unique asymmetric warfare against larger naval forces.
According to the report, the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps Navy (IRGCN) has been transformed into a highly motivated, well-equipped, and well-financed force and is effectively in control of the world's oil lifeline, the Strait of Hormuz.
The study says that if Washington takes military action against the Islamic Republic, the scale of Iran's response would likely be proportional to the scale of the damage inflicted on Iranian assets.