Iran Threatens Retaliation if Attacked
This article is from the archive of The New York Sun before the launch of its new website in 2022. The Sun has neither altered nor updated such articles but will seek to correct any errors, mis-categorizations or other problems introduced during transfer.
WASHINGTON – Iran intensified its war of words with America yesterday threatening to retaliate against American interests across the world if it was attacked over its controversial nuclear program.
In more fresh outburst of bellicose rhetoric before ahead of a key new phase of diplomacy over the crisis Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, said Iran would “give a double response to any strike.”
“The Americans should know that if they launch an assault against Islamic Iran, their interests in every possible part of the world will be harmed,” he said.
His threat came two days before the expiry of a U.N. deadline for Tehran to freeze its uranium enrichment program.
The U.N. nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency, is to report to the Security Council on Friday on whether Iran has complied with its demands.
The head of Iran’s nuclear organization, Gholam Reza Aghazadeh, met IAEA officials yesterday but diplomats held out little hope of a breakthrough.
America and its major European allies are pressing for the Security Council to approve sanctions if as widely predicted Iran is deemed to have ignored U.N. demands.
