Iran’s renewed threats Monday to wipe Israel “off the face of the earth” are clear evidence that sanctions are failing to curtail Tehran’s nuclear ambitions, experts said.
The threats were announced as Iran began its three-day war games, in which the regime will test-fire missiles at targets modeled after western bases in the region. Stronger European sanctions against oil also went into effect on Sunday.
Iran’s aggressive comments about israel didn’t surprise James Carafano, senior defense analyst with The Heritage Foundation, a think tank in Washington D.C. He said Iran is reading North Korea’s negotiating playbook.
“They realize the best way to play the West is to alternate between sounding belligerent and appearing reasonable,” Carafano said. “This has the dual goal of trying to get the West to back-off sanctions and buy time to advance their nuclear program.”
Iran’s IRNA news agency first reported the threats made by Iranian Revolutionary Guards Gen. Amir Ali Hajizadeh, who said the war games will display “that the Islamic Republic of Iran is resolute in standing up to…bullying, and will respond to any possible evil decisively and strongly.”
He added if Israel takes military action against Iran, “they will hand us an excuse to wipe them off the face of the earth.”
Sara A. Carter is The Washington Examiner’s national security correspondent. She can be reached at [email protected].
