Iran will not surrender to the US and “give up” its goals even if it is attacked, asserted President Hassan Rouhani on Thursday.
“More than one year after the imposition of these severe (US) sanctions, our people have not bowed to pressures despite facing difficulties in their lives,” Rouhani was quoted by the state news agency IRNA as saying.
“We need resistance so our enemies know that if they bomb our land, and if our children are martyred, wounded or taken as prisoners, we will not give up on our goals for the independence of our country and our pride,” he added.
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This comes a day after Iranian Revolutionary Guards commander Major General Gholamali Rashid said that the United States and its allies “do not dare” to attack Iran because of its “spirit of resistance”, said Revolutionary Guards commander on Wednesday.
Warning from Iran’s leadership comes amid US military increasing its presence in the Middle East in order to deter Iranian “threat”.
The US has ordered carrier strike warships and B-52 bombers off the coast of Fujairah in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to counter an alleged and unexplained threat from Iran.
More troops have also been deployed in the Persian Gulf, one of the world’s most strategic waterways, in what the US officials claimed was a reaction to photographs showing Iran loading missiles onto small traditional boats, The Times of Israel reported.
The diplomatic tensions between the US and Iran are at an all-time high, as the former has imposed numerous sanctions on the country.
In addition to this, Pentagon on Friday approved the deployment of a Patriot missile defence battery and a Navy ship to the Middle-East.
Last year, in November, the Trump Administration re-imposed sanctions on Iranian oil exports following the United States’ withdrawal from the 2015 Iran nuclear deal.