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Apr 29, 2020
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Senior Iranian Official Mohsen Rezaee threatens to Raze Israeli Cities to the Ground, Adds: Our Show of Force Was More Important Than the Actual Retaliation for Soleimani’s Killing; COVID-19 Is Man-Made

#7964 | 03:38
Source: Al-Jazeera Network (Qatar)

Mohsen Rezaee, the Secretary of Iran's Expediency Council, said in an April 28, 2020 interview on Al-Jazeera Network (Qatar) that Iran would raze Israel's cities to the ground if Israel takes "the slightest initiative" against Iran. He added that Iran's attack on the Ayn Al-Asad Air Base after the U.S. killing of Qasem Soleimani had been a harsh retaliation that caused many casualties and destroyed American aircrafts. Rezaee then said that Iran's capabilities and military prowess are "more important than the attack itself." With regard to the COVID-19 pandemic, Rezaee said that the virus is "smart" and man-made, and that the possibility that it was an anti-Iranian bio-weapon has not been refuted so far.

Interviewer: "You said to a gathering in Tehran that Iran's revenge against America for [killing] General Soleimani would be harsh and that Haifa and Israeli military centers would be included in this retaliation. Did the retaliation reach this level of threat, Dr. Rezaee?"

Mohsen Rezaee: "I will also say now that if the Zionist entity takes even the slightest initiative, you may rest assured that we will raze the Israeli cities to the ground. Back then, Tel Aviv was not the issue at hand. We had to deal with America. Mr. Trump instructed his military forces to attack General Soleimani, who had been a guest in Iraq.

[...]

"We said that we would exact a harsh revenge, and obviously, we did. The resistance in Iraq and in the region asked us [to let them] carry out some initiatives. They did carry out some small-scale initiatives, but in our revenge operation against the Ayn Al-Asad Air Base at least 60 people were injured according to our information. The buildings that were destroyed had American helicopters and planes in them. We saw them being destroyed. All of this points to casualties, but Mr. Trump did not want to disclose information about these casualties, because he did not want to respond to the [Iranian] attack. This is because he knew for sure that our own response would be more powerful. This is the first time that a country like Iran has carried out such an attack. Our missiles hit the targets with absolute accuracy. The American side failed to intercept any of those missiles. Iran's capability and military prowess are more important than the attack itself.

[...]

"I cannot say that the [Iranian] retaliation is over. Perhaps, in case of another mistake by the Americans, we shall carry out the other parts of our retaliation."

[...]

Interviewer: "Dr. Rezaee, at the beginning of the crisis, the Iranians concluded that the coronavirus was a Western biological attack against Iran. Do you still hold on to this conclusion?"

Rezaee: "So far, this possibility has not been refuted."

[...]

"This virus is smart and unnatural. It is man-made. It is different from natural viruses like SARS and other viruses. Therefore there are still suspicions out there."

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