Posted on 10/30/2002 3:54:57 PM PST by knighthawk
TEHRAN, Oct 30 (AFP) - Iran must prepare itself to face a US attack, the Islamic republic's defence minister said Wednesday, accusing Washington of "seeking to reorganise the region".
"We have to be prepared for the hypothesis of an American attack (against Iran), and reinforce our unity and avoid any divisive action," Rear-Admiral Ali Shamkhani told the student news agency ISNA.
"The US government wants to reorganise the region and as a consequence Iran could constitute a target," he said.
"If the Americans are in both Afghanistan and Iraq, this represents a significant challenge," he added.
Only the previous day, Shamkhani warned the United States to think twice before targeting the Islamic republic and promised a determined fight if Washington placed Tehran in its firing line.
US President George W. Bush in January lumped Iran into an "axis of evil" with Iraq and North Korea, raising widespread concern that Tehran could be among the next in line in Washington's widening "war on terror".
President Mohammed Khatami, on a visit to Spain, said Tuesday "mistaken" US foreign policy has helped to strengthen the appeal of extremists like al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden in the Islamic world.
If Iran continues to supoort global terrorism then they should fear an attack by the USA and our allies.
Code for "any demonstrations against the mullahcracy will be treated as treason"?
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