Iran flexes its military muscles amid crisis with Israel

(Tehran) By parading soldiers, missiles and drones for “Army Day”, Iran wanted to show on Wednesday that it was “ready” to face a possible response from Israel in response to its attack unprecedented targeting Israeli territory.

This annual celebration of the armed forces gave Iranian President Ebrahim Raïssi the opportunity to launch new threats to Israel, sworn enemy of the Islamic Republic.

“If the slightest aggression were perpetrated by the Zionist regime against our soil, it would lead to a fierce and severe response,” he said, addressing the military hierarchy after the parade on a base near Tehran.

Israel announced its determination to make Iran pay the price for its attack carried out overnight from Saturday to Sunday, even if almost all of the 350 drones and missiles were intercepted with the help of the United States and other allied countries.

“This operation showed that our armed forces were ready,” said Mr. Raïssi. It also “shattered the glory of the Zionist regime,” he added, referring to Israel, a country that Iran does not recognize and whose disappearance it wants.

The Iranian president once again insisted that the weekend attack had been “precise and measured” in response to the strike, blamed on Israel, against its consulate in Damascus on 1^er April which killed seven Iranian soldiers, against a backdrop of regional tension with the war in the Gaza Strip.

As in previous years, the military ceremony offered the opportunity for the Iranian armed forces to show the extent of their land and air equipment.

Different types of drones were paraded, such as the Mohajer, Ababil and Arash, or the Dezfoul and S-300 surface-to-air missile systems, the latter having been supplied by Russia. Many military vehicles, including the Tiam battle tank, drove in front of the troops of the regular army and the Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), the ideological army of the Islamic Republic.

“We are 100% ready […] whether it is air cover or bombers, and we are ready to strike targets, especially with (Russian jets) Sukhoi 24,” said Air Force Chief General Hamid Vahedi, quoted by the ISNA agency.

“Humiliated”

In his speech, Mr. Raïssi once again criticized the countries which “sought to normalize their relations with the Zionist regime”.

“They are now humiliated in front of their own people, which constitutes a strategic failure for the regime” of Israel, he added, without mentioning the names of countries.

Negotiated by the United States, the Abraham Accords signed in 2020 allowed Israel to normalize ties with Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates and Morocco, after signing peace with Egypt and Jordan in 1979 and in 1994.

Following the weekend attack, the United States announced Tuesday that it would impose “in the coming days, new sanctions targeting Iran, including its drone and missile programs”, its corps of Revolutionary Guards and its Ministry of Defense.

British Foreign Minister David Cameron on Wednesday hoped that the G7 countries would impose “coordinated sanctions” against Iran.

In the center of Tehran, where activity was normal, some residents expressed their concern and fatalism while waiting for a possible Israeli response, while others said they did not care about the war.

“We are Muslims and we don’t care about war because we believe that if God wants there to be one, we will survive,” testified Fereshteh, a teacher, interviewed in one of the main squares of the city. city, where large colorful banners celebrating the attack on Israel were hung.

For his part, Hossein, a 50-year-old lawyer, affirmed that his fellow citizens were “ready to face everything” when it came to “defending the homeland”. “Our country is facing economic sanctions and many people are in difficulty, but the defense of our country is stronger than any obstacle,” he told AFP.