Monday, December 12, 2016

Iran warns: 'Zionist regime' would be destroyed in a war

Iran’s defense minister on Sunday warned that if U.S. President-elect Donald Trump’s policies lead to a war in the Middle East, it would result in the destruction of Israel.

"Even though a businessman, the assistants that ... (Trump) has chosen may map a different path for him, and this has led to unease, particularly among Persian Gulf countries," Defense Minister Hossein Dehghan was quoted by Reuters as having told a security conference in Tehran.

At the same time, claimed the Iranian minister, "Considering Trump's character and that he measures the cost of everything in dollars, it does not seem likely that he would take strong action against our country.”

"Enemies may want to impose a war on us based on false calculations and only taking into consideration their material capabilities. Such a war would mean the destruction of the Zionist regime (Israel) ... and will engulf the whole region and could lead to a world war," Dehghan warned, according to Reuters.

"Among other consequences of the war, would be the destruction of the city-states on the southern shore of the Persian Gulf, because they lack popular support," he added, referring to small Western-allied Gulf states such as the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Qatar.

The comments amid Iranian fears that Trump would cancel the nuclear deal Iran signed with Western powers last year. READ MORE