Iran: Our missiles can reach US bases, Israel

Iran's Revolutionary Guards tested 14 missiles on Tuesday, the second day of war games intended a show of strength to the Islamic Republic's enemies in Israel and Washington.

The surface-to-surface missiles, with a maximum range of 1,250 miles, were fired simultaneously at a single target, the official IRNA news agency reported. The missiles put Israel, U.S. bases in the Persian Gulf and parts of southeastern and eastern Europe within Iran's reach.

The head of the Revolutionary Guards' aerospace division emphasized Iran's preparedness to strike Israeli and U.S. interests in the event of any attack on Iran.

"The range of our missiles has been designed based on American bases in the region as well as the Zionist regime," Commander Amir Ali Hajizadeh told the semi-official Fars news agency.

Washington and Israel have said they do not rule out military strikes on Iran if diplomatic means fail to stop it developing nuclear weapons. Tehran denies its nuclear program is aimed at building bombs.

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IRNA said the Guards fired nine Zelzal missiles, two Shahab-1s, two Shahab-2s and one upgraded Shahab-3 missile. Iranian officials have previously announced that the Shahab 3 can reach targets up to 1,250 miles away, putting Israel and U.S. bases in the Gulf within reach.

Emboldened
A long-time enemy of the United States, Iran has been emboldened by what it sees as U.S. military defeats in neighboring Iraq and Afghanistan. Both countries are still home to large troop numbers and Washington has other bases in the Gulf that Iran could choose to target.

"The Americans have reduced our labors," Hajizadeh told Fars. "Their military bases in the region are in ... Afghanistan which we can hit with these missiles."

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The 'Great Prophet 6' war games, to be carried out on land and sea, are a "message of peace and friendship to countries of the region," Hajizadeh said on Monday.

Asked whether Iranian missiles were a threat to Europe, Hajizadeh told IRNA that while Iran had the technological capacity to build longer-range missiles, the 1,250-mile range had been chosen precisely with Israel and U.S. bases in mind.

"Except American and the Zionist regime, we do not feel a threat from any other country," he said.