Iranian Vice President Mohammad Reza Aref warned Monday that war with Israel “could erupt at any moment,” considering the ceasefire in effect since late June “not a formal agreement” but rather a “phase of cessation in hostilities”.
“We must be prepared at every moment for confrontation; right now, we are not even in a ceasefire (agreement); we are in a cessation of hostilities,” Aref said in a meeting with academics in Tehran.
The Iranian vice president’s remarks came a day after Yahya Rahim Safavi, military advisor to Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and former commander of the Revolutionary Guards, confirmed that Iran was “preparing plans for the worst-case scenario”.
“We are not in a ceasefire, we are in a stage of war. No protocol, regulation or agreement has been written between us and the US or Israel,” said Safavi.
“I think another war may happen, and after that, there may be no more wars,” he added.
“The Americans and the Zionists say they create peace through power; therefore, Iran must also become strong, because in the system of nature, the weak are trampled,” he said, calling for the strengthening of Iran’s missile, drone and cyber systems.
On 13 June, Israel launched war against Iran targeting nuclear, military, and civilian sites, resulting in more than a thousand deaths, including nuclear and military scientists and military commanders.
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