Iran army chief: Enemy threats will not go unanswered

Iranian Army's chief commander has warned that escalating rhetoric and threats by Iran’s enemies will be regarded as a direct threat and will not go unanswered, noting that any mistake by adversaries would trigger a decisive response.

“We will cut off the hand of any aggressor,” Major General Amir Hatami told students at the Army Command and Staff University on Wednesday, days after US President Donald Trump explicitly threatened Iran with military aggression. 

“Islamic Iran considers the intensification of the enemies' rhetoric against the Iranian nation as a threat and will not leave its continuation unanswered,” he added.

Hatami underlined that any hostile action against Iran would have far-reaching consequences, stressing that the Islamic Republic of Iran Army will act with full force to defend the country’s independence, territorial integrity, and the Islamic Republic system.

Hatami emphasized that Iran’s armed forces are now far more prepared than in the pre-war period, warning that if enemies make a miscalculation, they will face a stronger and more decisive response.

He was referring to a US-Israeli aggression against Iran in June, which killed at least 1,064 people and targeted military and civilian infrastructure in 12 days. 

On June 24, Iran managed to impose a halt to the aggression after conducting waves of successful retaliatory operations.

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The remarks come amid interventionist remarks and threats by the US and Israel following the eruption of sporadic protests in Iran in response to the devaluation of national currency. 

Such protests by shopkeepers have no connection to the US president Donald Trump or the “criminal prime minister of the Israeli regime [Benjamin Netanyahu],” Hatami said. 

Addressing recent unrest, the army chief said protests are a normal and natural phenomenon in any country, but rapidly turning protests into riots is abnormal and inconsistent with Iran’s “cultured nation,” adding that such developments are the result of enemy planning.

While acknowledging that Iran, like all countries, faces internal problems that require reform, he warned that enemies are deliberately focusing on harming the population and this should not be overlooked.

Referring to sanctions, Hatami said “oppressive sanctions” are part of an enemy strategy to harm the Iranian people through economic pressure.

According to Hatami, the current global period is an attempt to shape a “new world order,” saying such efforts have created widespread security challenges, instability and insecurity across the world and regions.

He said the Israeli regime acts as a forward and proxy base for the West, adding that its existence holds particular importance for Western powers.

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