INTERNATIONAL: Iran's armed forces will target Israel's heart if it makes "the slightest move" against the Islamic Republic; President Ebrahim Raisi told a military parade on Monday 18th April, amid stalled talks between Tehran and world powers to revive a 2015 nuclear pact.
Israel, widely believed to have the Middle East's only atomic arsenal, says it will not be bound by any Iran nuclear deal and could eventually take unilateral action against Iranian nuclear sites.
"The message for the Zionist regime is that if you are looking to normalise relations with some countries of the region, you should know that even the slightest movement of yours is not hidden from our intelligence, security, and armed forces. You should also know that if you make even the slightest move against the Iranian people, rest assured that the target of our armed forces will be the centre of the Zionist regime," Raisi said in a televised speech at a military parade to mark the national Army Day.
Troops marched in front of the podium where Raisi stood with army officers. Helicopters flew overhead and parachutists dropped down over the parade area near the tomb of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the founder of the Islamic state.
The United States and Iran have been engaged in indirect talks for more than a year to rescue the pact. Washington left it in 2018 and reimposed sanctions on Tehran.
But the talks were suspended last month over the unresolved issue of whether the United States might remove the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps from the U.S. Foreign Terrorist Organization list, as demanded by Tehran.
Iran has reacted by breaching the deal's limits on its nuclear programme. Under the deal, Iran limited its nuclear efforts in return for relief from economic sanctions.
It has accused Israel of several attacks on facilities linked to the programme and killing Iranian nuclear scientists. Israel has neither denied nor confirmed the allegations.
Israel, which the Islamic Republic refuses to recognise, says it will not accept the Islamic Republic as "a nuclear threshold state."
PHOTO: MILITARY PARADE / IRAN'S PRESIDENT EBRAHIM RAISI DELIVERING A SPEECH FROM THE PODIUM
