Iran says it will attack Israel if U.S. strikes

By JTA Staff · October 23, 2008

Iran will target Israel if there is a U.S. attack on the Islamic state’s nuclear facilities, a senior Iranian official said.

Dr. Seyed Safavi, an adviser to supreme leader Ali Khamenei, revealed the change in policy to foreign diplomats two weeks ago in London, according to a report Wednesday in the Israeli daily Ha’aretz.

The policy had stipulated an attack both on Israel and American interests in the region and globally in response to an American or Israeli attack.

Safavi also said that Tehran officials are proposing a pre-emptive strike on Israel that would incorporate actions by Iran’s Revolutionary Guards.

The proposal, Safavi told the diplomats, was in response to threats made by Israeli officials, notably Transportation Minister Shaul Mofaz.

Mofaz said Israel would be forced to strike Iran’s nuclear reactor if the country’s uranium enrichment program is not curbed. The proposed pre-emptive strike on Israel has not yet become official policy.

As part of a campaign to persuade Iran to cease objectionable nuclear activity, the United Nations Security Council passed a dual-track resolution last month providing incentives to Iran to stop its uranium enrichment and enacting sanctions if the Islamic Republic refuses.