TEHRAN – The Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) on Monday warned Israel of a “crushing” response to any attack on Iran’s nuclear and military sites, emphasizing that the country will target the source of any aggression against its sensitive sites.

“If such threats are carried out, the Islamic Republic’s Armed Forces will immediately and decisively attack all centers, bases, routes, and spaces used to carry out the aggression,”

Major General Gholam Ali Rashid, commander of Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters, said at a meeting with IRGC Ground Force commanders on Monday, Press TV reported.

In a veiled warning to Washington, the top general pointed out that any Israeli threat against Iranian sites will be impossible without the support of the United States.

The remarks come as Israeli war minister Benny Gantz told officials in Washington last week that he had directed the regime’s military to prepare for the possibility of a military strike on Iranian nuclear facilities.

Iranian politicians and military officials have repeatedly warned Israel against any adventurism against the Islamic Republic, pledging a crushing response to any attack.

Last week, Iran’s Army Commander Major General Abdolrahim Mousavi said Israel’s empty threats hail from Tel Aviv’s fear of the Islamic Republic, adding that the country’s firm response to any Israeli aggression would bring forward the occupying entity’s annihilation.

The New York Times, citing several current and former Israeli military officials and experts, reported on Saturday that the Tel Aviv regime lacks the ability to act on its threats of launching an attack against nuclear sites in Iran, as the Islamic Republic has significantly promoted its defense capabilities.

The report highlighted that a wider attempt to destroy dozens of nuclear sites in distant parts of Iran would be “beyond the current resources of the Israeli armed forces.”

According to retired Israeli air force general Relik Shafir, Iran has dozens of nuclear sites, some deep underground that would be hard for Israeli bombs to quickly penetrate and destroy.

The Israeli air force, he added, does not have warplanes large enough to carry the latest bunker-busting bombs.

“It’s very difficult — I would say even impossible — to launch a campaign that would take care of all these sites,” Shafir said.

One current Israeli security official said the Tel Aviv regime did not currently have the ability to inflict any significant damage to the underground facilities in Natanz and Fordow.
Moreover, the Israeli military lacks the ability to simultaneously fend off Iranian fighter jets and air defense systems.

“Iran’s defense capabilities are also much stronger than in 2012, when Israel last seriously considered attacking. Its nuclear sites are better fortified, and it has more surface-to-surface missiles that can be launched swiftly from tunnels,” the article read.