TEHRAN: Iranian Defence Minister Brigadier General Ahmad Vahidi has downplayed the Israeli war rhetoric against Iran, saying the threats by the Tel Aviv regime to launch a strike against Iran are just worthless claims.Considering this regime (Israel)s defeat against the Muslim Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, the regimes threats to attack our countrys atomic facilities are worthless and nothing more than claims, Vahidi said on Sunday. Israel has at times threatened to attack Irans nuclear facilities based on the unfounded allegation that Irans nuclear energy programme has been diverted towards the production of an atomic bomb.
Iran rejects the allegations against its nuclear energy activities, arguing that as a committed signatory to the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and a member of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), it has the right to use nuclear technology for peaceful purposes.
The Iranian defence minister pointed to the Israeli regimes defeats against the resistance of the Lebanese and Palestinian people during the 33-day and 22-day wars on Lebanon and Gaza, saying, The Zionist regime seeks to magnify its military might, which has previously faced defeat.
The Israeli regimes aggressive policies are intended to magnify its delusional power, he added. Vahidi emphasised that Israels recent wars against the Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip and the victories achieved by the resistance in Lebanon, Palestine and Gaza at different periods of time proved that the regimes claims have been entirely baseless.
Over 160 Palestinians, including women and children, were killed and about 1,200 others were injured in the Israeli attacks on Gaza that were carried out during the eight-day period of November 14-21. In retaliation, the Palestinian resistance fighters fired rockets and missiles into Israeli cities, killing at least five Israelis.
On the other hand, the White House was reportedly opposed to a new round of sanctions against Iran that the Senate approved in its latest efforts to mount economic pressure on the Islamic Republic.
US senators voted 94-0 to a new round of sanctions against Irans energy, port, shipping and shipbuilding sectors in an amendment to the National Defence Authorisation Act. The Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB) and its chief Ezzatollah Zarghami are also the target of the new bans.
Under the new rules, the United States would sanction anyone selling or supplying certain commodities to Iran - including graphite, aluminum, steel, and some industrial software - that are relevant to the countrys shipbuilding and nuclear sectors. The sanctions were again imposed based on the unsubstantiated claim that Iran is progressing towards the production of a nuclear bomb, an allegation Tehran has vehemently rejected.
The window is closing. The time for the waiting game is over. Yes, our sanctions are having a demonstrable effect on the Iranian economy, but Iran is still working just as hard to develop nuclear weapons, said Democratic Senator Robert Menendez of New Jersey, one of the authors of the package. A report published by Foreign Policy on Friday, however, reveals that the White House was totally against the new measure and conveyed its message to senators through its National Security Council Spokesman Tommy Vietor hours before the amendment was passed.
By Daily Times
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