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U.S. Admiral Michael Mullen (AP)
Last update - 13:38 04/07/2008
Iran: Any attack on our nuclear facility will be beginning of war
By Amir Oren, Haaretz Correspondent
Tags: U.S., Israel, Iran

Tehran will consider any military action against its nuclear facilities as the beginning of a war, Iran's official news agency IRNA reported Friday.

The commander of Iran's Revolutionary Guards, General Mohammad Ali Jafari, was quoted as saying that any country that attacks Iran would regret doing so.

According to the report, Jafari has warned that such a step would be the beginning of war.
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However, the general was also quoted as saying that he considers it unlikely Iran's adversaries would attempt an attack.

In a newspaper interview last week, Jafari warned that if attacked, Iran would barrage Israel with missiles and choke off the strategic Strait of Hormuz, a narrow outlet for oil tankers leaving the Persian Gulf.

Israel carried out a large military exercise last month, seen throughout the media as a rehearsal for an attack on Iran.

U.S. admiral: Iran likely to attack Israel

Meanwhile, a U.S. admiral warned earlier this week that Iran is likely to launch ballistic missiles against Israel and the United States and the NATO alliance should prepare for it.

In recent years, the missile boats of the Sixth Fleet practiced intercepting Shahab-3 missiles from Iran aimed at Israel, along with the Arrow batteries of the air force and U.S. and Israeli batteries of Patriot missiles.

In an article entitled "Maritime Strategy in an Age of Blood and Belief" in the U.S. Naval Institute's monthly Proceedings, fleet commander Admiral James Winnefeld describes the possibility of an offensive barrage of ballistic missiles fired from Iran against Israel as being "by far the most likely employment of ballistic missiles in the world today, and it demands our immediate attention in the event of a need for a U.S. or NATO response."

He says Iran is an "unpredictable adversary," which could be provoked into action "by an isolated, and perhaps seemingly unimportant, event."

Winnefeld's commander, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff at the Pentagon, Admiral Michael Mullen, mentioned earlier this week during his visit in Israel the presence of missile defense vessels of the Sixth Fleet in the Mediterranean and their role in intercepting Iranian missiles.

One of Mullen's hosts noted at the end of the visit that even though Israel Defense Forces Chief of Staff Gabi Ashkenazi and the other senior officers did not discuss operational coordination, it was mentioned during discussions that both sides would like to avoid mistaken confrontations, of the sort that led to the IDF attack against the U.S. Navy ship, Liberty, in June 1967.

At a briefing to reporters in the Pentagon Wednesday, Mullen discussed his good relations with Ashkenazi and his impressions of the visits with the IDF on the northern border and near the Gaza Strip. "Israel remains a vital and trusted military ally in the Middle East," he said, which faces "very real security threats" and "the tyranny of what I call 'close-quarters geography,'" Mullen said.

The chairman of the Joint Chiefs added that "Iran is still working to develop nuclear weapons" and that the Israeli timetable in relation to Iran's nuclear program is shorter than the U.S's. However, the admiral stressed he is opposed to an Israeli or U.S. strike against Iran.

Such a strike could destabilize the region and open a third front for the U.S. armed forces, while it is preoccupied in Iraq and Afghanistan, he said.

The Iranian regime remains "a destabilizing factor in the area," Mullen said, but in his view the preferred way of resolving the issue lies in international diplomacy and not the use of military force.

Related articles:
  • How many missiles will be fired from Iran, Syria, Lebanon in the next war?
  • Iran threatens 'devastating' response if attacked by Israel
  • Strike on Iran is good for Israel and U.S. in the long run
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      1.   Good morning Teheran. 06:36  |  Stephen. 04/07/08
      2.   The Admiral is correct 06:39  |  Pastor Joseph 04/07/08
      3.   Israel Do Whatever You Need To Survive 07:10  |  Yosemite 04/07/08
      4.   ain`t gonna happen... 07:17  |  bashar 04/07/08
      5.   Best chance for peace-- A reformist uprising in Iran 07:20  |  David G 04/07/08
      6.   reply to # one, he aint correct... 07:23  |  Rob of melbourne 04/07/08
      7.   Attack iran --Game over 4 israel 07:24  |  Angel of justice 04/07/08
      8.   Poor Pastor Joseph 07:27  |  Colin Wright 04/07/08
      9.   We should not wait : tomorrow it might be too late. 07:27  |  Jean Van Daem 04/07/08
      10.   Saber rattling 07:31  |  Baz Mann 04/07/08
      11.   Warmongering Nonsense 07:42  |  chet 04/07/08
      12.   misconstrued 07:47  |  Steinkamp 04/07/08
      13.   why would Iran do such a stupid thing? 07:47  |  natan 04/07/08
      14.   The admiral is correct 07:58  |  Natallie Durson 04/07/08
      15.   U.S. admiral: Iran likely to attack Israel 07:59  |  Joshua 04/07/08
      16.   Looking for a mission 08:04  |  CCB 04/07/08
      17.   Int`l Sanctions Against Saddam Were A Diplomatic Issue , 08:21  |  Joseph.E 04/07/08
      18.   Yes,the Admiral is correct 08:27  |  Hastaroth 04/07/08
      19.   Yes,the Admiral is correct 08:27  |  Hastaroth 04/07/08
      20.   FIRST STRIKE NOW! 08:27  |  NUKE BOMB 04/07/08
      21.   AND THERE IT IS, the excuse to strike iran 08:43  |  VIPER 04/07/08
      22.   Equal justice... 08:50  |  Esther 04/07/08
      23.   The Admiral is hoping and praying that Iran will attack Israel 09:05  |  John Isenhower 04/07/08
      24.   A man of God arrives to spread his message of peace # 1 09:06  |  Clickfool 04/07/08
      25.   Goal Posts: They Keep On Moving 09:07  |  Rov 04/07/08
      26.   Time for sanctions is over : It?s time to act! 09:24  |  Jean Van Daem 04/07/08
      27.   Utter drivel from a man whose head is solid bone 09:39  |  Clickfool 04/07/08
      28.   Little boys playing war games in the U.S. 09:40  |  Maureen Ann 04/07/08
      29.   Funny how Everyone Else is Saying Israel will be the Aggresure. 09:42  |  ID 04/07/08
      30.   #5 - The short answer... 09:50  |  JES 04/07/08
      31.   Really? 10:04  |  Chris Linthwaite 04/07/08
      32.   So What If I`m A Nobody! 10:05  |  Yosemite 04/07/08
      33.   Israel paranoid 10:06  |  DM 04/07/08
      34.   CCB, pedant! 10:18  |  Absolute Israel 04/07/08
      35.   butt VIPER 10:21  |  Absolute Israel 04/07/08
      36.   The chorus grows 10:23  |  Maki 04/07/08
      37.   Setting up another Pearl Harbor 10:29  |  MARK KLEIN, M.D. 04/07/08
      38.   To Viper 10:49  |  Natanel 04/07/08
      39.   Irresponsible and probably untrue headline. 10:55  |  Michael 04/07/08
      40.   when was the last time Iran attacked Israel? 10:58  |  Sarah 04/07/08
      41.   take cover tomorrow 11:09  |  K 04/07/08
      42.   # 5 Viper 11:16  |  Traude 04/07/08
      43.   Why should he say it ? To help Iran ?why not in osirak? 11:21  |  mehmet 04/07/08
      44.   Iran likely to attack Israel 11:22  |  Joshua 04/07/08
      45.   mixed messages from the admirals 11:23  |  Cipora Julianna Kohn 04/07/08
      46.   destabilising 11:30  |  JJ burke 04/07/08
      47.   Goal Posts: They Keep On Moving 11:34  |  Rov 04/07/08
      48.   ok. Getting closer to $ 250 per barrel with every day 11:35  |  Jew- and Bookburner 04/07/08
      49.   More fear-mongering II 11:36  |  Bob 04/07/08
      50.   To Michael 11:38  |  Natanel 04/07/08
      51.   Warmongering should be illegal. 11:40  |  Michael 04/07/08
      52.   to Nathalie a simple question 11:43  |  Aby 04/07/08
      53.   "Israeli timetable in relation to Iran`s nuclear program" 11:45  |  Cipora Julianna Kohn 04/07/08
      54.   Chris Ignorant 11:49  |  Aby 04/07/08
      55.   "the tyranny of `close quarter geography`" 11:53  |  Cipora Julianna Kohn 04/07/08
      56.   Remember the flappy-mouthed Olmert`s warning? 11:54  |  Clickfool 04/07/08
      57.   More fear-mongering I 12:01  |  Bob 04/07/08
      58.   THE INVADER DESERVES A TOTAL DESTRUCTION 12:02  |  indrajaya 04/07/08
      59.   VIPER (#5) Robbing your freedom? 12:05  |  Gil 04/07/08
      60.   Iran as always 12:06  |  Millicent 04/07/08
      61.   VIPER (#21) Robbing your freedom? 12:07  |  Gil 04/07/08
      62.   #27, fool, the drivel is coming from you 12:09  |  Cipora Julianna Kohn 04/07/08
      63.   This is called setting the stage 12:12  |  Dror 04/07/08
      64.   Israeli fear is very apparent! 12:14  |  sinalco 04/07/08
      65.   Cipora #45 12:16  |  examiner 04/07/08
      66.   Gulf of Tonkin was a red flag operation 12:22  |  Dror 04/07/08
      67.   Gulf of Tonkin was a red flag operation 12:22  |  Dror 04/07/08
      68.   Gulf of Tonkin was a red flag operation 12:22  |  Dror 04/07/08
      69.   CLICKFOOL (#27) you just got to love DR. Strangelove 12:30  |  Gil