Iran warns Israel of attack consequences

Source: Agencies  |   2008-6-30  |     NEWSPAPER EDITION

IRAN'S foreign minister said yesterday he did not believe Israel was in a position to attack the Islamic Republic over its nuclear program.

"They know full well what the consequences of such an act would be," Manoucher Mottaki told reporters.

He was speaking a day after the head of the Revolutionary Guards was quoted as saying Iran would impose controls on shipping in the Gulf oil route if Iran was attacked and warned regional states of reprisals if they took part.

Speculation about a possible attack on Iran has risen since an American newspaper reported this month that Israel had practiced such a strike.

Mottaki said Israel was dealing with the consequences of its 2006 war with Hezbollah guerrillas in Lebanon and was suffering a "crisis of deepening illegitimacy" in the Middle East region.

"That's why we do notsee the Zionist regime ina situation in which they would want to engage insuch an adventurism," he said when asked about the possibility of an Israeli attack.

Fear of an escalation in the standoff between the West and Iran, the world's fourth-largest oil producer, have been one factor pushing up oil prices. Crude hit a record level on international markets, reaching nearly US$143 a barrel on Friday.

Analysts say Iran could use unconventional tactics, such as deploying small craft to attack ships, or using allies in the area to strike at United States or Israeli interests.

Iranian Defence Minister Mostafa Mohammad Najjar said reports of a strike were part of the "psychological warfare" waged by the West against Iran, aimed at diverting attention from "domestic failures" in the US and Israel.