Iran’s powerful Revolutionary Guard Corps on Saturday said it was ready for battle and “any scenario” amid increasing tensions with world powers since the Houthi rebels it is backing in Yemen’s civil war attacked two Saudi oil fields last weekend with drones, AP reported. The drone strikes disrupted the world’s oil supply and caused oil prices to shoot up.
The United States has blamed Iran for instigating the attack and on Friday decided to send American troops to strengthen Saudi Arabia’s air and missile defenses, according to Reuters. The Pentagon, the seat of the US defence department, said a moderate number of troops would be sent to Saudi Arabia. It also announced details of plans to speed up the delivery of military equipment to Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. Washington has also imposed a new set of sanctions on Tehran.
Iran has denied involvement in the September 14 attack. The past week, Iran’s Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, who is in New York to attend a UN General Assembly session warned any retaliatory strike on Iran would cause an “an all-out war”.
On Saturday, General Hossein Salami, who leads the Revolutionary Guard Corps, said his forces had carried out “war exercises and are ready for any scenario”. He was speaking at an event in Tehran where the pieces of an American surveillance drone shot down by Iran were on display.
“If anyone crosses our borders, we will hit them,” said Salami. “We won’t stop until the destruction of any aggressor. And we will not leave any secure spot. Do not miscalculate and do not make a mistake.”
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