Israel cannot attack Iran: IRGC commander

Israel cannot attack Iran: IRGC commander

Members of the Iranian Army's Ground Forces Academy march during a graduation ceremony in Tehran on November 10, 2011.

A senior Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) commander has flatly dismissed Israel’s capability to launch military aggression against Tehran.

“The fake and illegitimate regime occupying al-Quds (Jerusalem) does not have the power to attack Iran,” IRGC Navy Commander Rear-Admiral Ali Fadavi told ISNA on Friday.

“Throughout the history of its wholly evil presence, the Zionist regime [of Israel] has never had an existence separate from the US and is not known as a separate entity,” he added.

Israel has repeatedly threatened to attack Iran's nuclear energy facilities based on unsubstantiated claims that the activities there may be directed toward military purposes.

Iran rejects the allegations, arguing that as a committed signatory to the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and a member of the International Atomic Energy Agency, it has the right to use the nuclear technology for peaceful purposes.

Despite warnings by former and current Israeli security and intelligence officials, the Tel Aviv regime has recently stepped up its aggressive rhetoric against Iran with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Minister of Military Affairs Ehud Barak spearheading the belligerent campaign.

Iranian officials have promised a crushing response to any military strike against the country, warning that any such measure could result in a war that would spread beyond the Middle East.