Iran: On The Brink Of 'Full-Scale Confrontation'

Iran on the brink of 'full-scale confrontation with the enemy,' IRGC chief warns

The head of Iran’s Islamic Revolution Guard Corps on Wednesday warned Tehran was on the brink of full-on conflict with its enemy, a day after Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said there would not be a war with the United States amid escalating tensions.

“We are on the cusp of a full-scale confrontation with the enemy,” Major General Hossein Salami said, according to the Reuters news agency, which cited Iran’s Fars news agency.

“This moment in history — because the enemy has stepped into the field of confrontation with us with all the possible capacity — is the most decisive moment of the Islamic revolution,” added Salami, who tapped as the new IRGC chief last month.

President Hassan Rouhani later condemned the US sanctions on his country.

“The hard times and problems of America’s economic war against Iran have begun… what America is doing is a crime against humanity,” he said.

Rouhani accused the US of disrupting the flow of “livelihood, food and medical drugs” to normal Iranians. “This war is not against the government of the Islamic republic of Iran, it’s against the Iranian nation,” he said.

The comments come amid rising tensions in the region that saw the deployment earlier this month of an American aircraft carrier strike group to the Persian Gulf and attacks on Saudi oil infrastructure.

On Sunday, four ships, including two Saudi oil tankers, were sabotaged off the United Arab Emirates coast in an attack US officials reportedly suspect was carried out at Iran’s behest.

Iran has called for an investigation into what it called an “alarming” incident, while a senior member of Iran’s parliament blamed Israel on Tuesday for the attacks on the ships, for which no one has yet claimed responsibility.

The attacks “appeared to be Israeli mischief,” Behrouz Nemati, an Iranian government spokesman said after a closed-door session of parliament, quoted by state news agency IRNA.

Iran’s IRGC chief: Ready for 'full confrontation' with the US

The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps released a statement on Wednesday claiming the country was now working at maximum capacity in preparation for a “full confrontation” with its "enemy," which is a reverence to escalating tensions with the United States.
The statement, from newly appointed IRGC commander Hossein Salami, said that this was a decisive moment for the Iranian “revolution” and that Iran’s enemies were working hard to break the stability and will of the Iranian people.

On April 8 the US designated the IRGC a terrorist organization. Salami was appointed to head the organization on April 21. 

The IRGC is Iran’s most important military force, with units that control ballistic missiles, naval auxiliaries and also ground forces. It also runs internal security and has local militias and has cadres that work abroad to advise Iranian allies. As a “revolutionary” organization, it is the backbone of the state and its theocratic regime. It is estimated to have several hundred thousand personnel and local militia members.  

Since tensions began to escalate on May 5 between the US and Iran the IRGC has been careful not to provoke the US but Salami has reassured the Iranian parliament that his men are up to the task of defending the country. For instance on May 13 the IRGC commander said that US naval forces might present an “opportunity” for the IRGC to strike at, and the IRGC hinted it was preparing for “full scale war” with the US.

Taken together the statements appear to show the Iran is trying to convince its own people that it is ready to face any US threats.

The US has said that any Iranian attacks or attacks by Iran’s allies and proxies will result in retaliation. On May 12 and 13 ships were sabotaged in the Gulf of Oman and drones struck at Saudi Arabia from Iran’s allies in Yemen, raising the tensions. The US has recalled non-essential staff from Iraq.