Tehran has always been prepared for a full-fledged war, Iran’s Revolutionary Guards Corps Aerospace Force Chief Amirali Hajizadeh said in a statement on Sunday, just a day after two drone attacks on oilfields in Saudi Arabia, which were claimed by Houthis and blamed by the US and Saudi Arabia on Tehran.
“Everybody should know that all American bases and their aircraft carriers, at a distance of up to 2,000 kilometres around Iran, are within the range of our missiles,” Hajizadeh said.
According to Hajizadeh, the Iranian military are ready to target two US bases and one carrier in the event of an armed conflict.
“Al-Udeid base in Qatar, az-Zafra base in the UAE and a US vessel in the Gulf of Oman would be targeted if Washington took military action,” the commander said.
US Blames Iran for Drone Attacks in Saudi Arabia
Reacting to the accusations, the Iranian Foreign Ministry’s spokesman Abbas Mousavi has condemned Mike Pompeo’s recent statement on Iran’s involvement in the drones attack against Saudi Aramco oil facilities in the kingdom, calling them a lie.
“The US policy of exerting “maximum pressure”, that apparently failed, veered towards “maximum lie” policy,” Mousavi said.
On Saturday, two drone attacks, claimed by Houthis, caused major fires in two oil facilities: in Abqaiq in eastern Saudia Arabia and Khurais northeast of Riyadh. These were eventually contained by security and emergency service personnel.
This prompted US Senator Lindsey Graham to accuse Iran of looking to “wreak havoc in the Middle East”, and recommend that the US “put on the table an attack on Iranian oil refineries if they continue their provocations”.
Moreover, US Secretary Mike Pompeo pinned the blame on Tehran over the attacks calling for public condemnation of Iran’s actions.
Yemen’s Houthi movement has been launching drone attacks against Saudi Arabia’s infrastructure and military facilities in response to the Saudi-led military campaign in Yemen, which began in March 2015, aiming to restore the government of President Abdrabbuh Mansour Hadi.
Both Riyadh and Washington claimed that Houthis have been receiving Iranian military assistance. Tehran has repeatedly rejected these allegations, citing the naval blockade which has been in place against the southern Arabian country since 2015.
Source » almasdarnews