Senior Iranian Official Mohsen Rezaee: We are Looking for an Excuse to Raze Tel-Aviv to the Ground; As U.S. Foothold in Region Weakens Regimes of KSA and Gulf Countries Will Fall

Mohsen Rezaee, secretary of Iran's Expediency Council and former IRGC Commander-in-Chief, was interviewed on Mayadeen TV (Lebanon) on February 8, 2020. In the interview Rezaee said that Iran has precise information on American activity in the region. He said that all the American bases are under surveillance, all the aircraft carriers are under control and Iran has precise information on American activity in Iraq and the Gulf countries. Rezaee added that Iran even monitors American soldiers when they go to hotels in Kuwait or Bahrain, and it knows such things as the names of accomplices with the U.S. and the food sources of the U.S. troops. Rezaee said that Iran had targeted the American military base in Ayn Al-Assad because it knew that it was very important to the Americans.

Rezaee stated that he has no doubt that if the U.S. attacks Iran, Iran will "raze Tel-Aviv to the ground." He added that Iran has been looking for a pretext to attack Tel Aviv because Israel played a role in the "martyrdom" of IRGC Qods Force commander Qasem Soleimani. Rezaee continued to say that the American presence in the region is volatile and the goal of the "Deal of the Century" was to give it a stable foothold in the region, to do away with the Palestinian cause, and take over Gaza and disarm Hamas. Rezaee said that he expects a significant weakening of the U.S. over the next decade. He added that once the people in Saudi Arabia and the Gulf countries realize that America is no longer as strong as it was, there will be a revolution in Saudi Arabia, followed by a revolution in other Gulf countries. He said that the global collapse of the U.S. will begin in "West Asia."

Mohsen Rezaee: "Naturally, we have precise information, thanks be to Allah. All the American bases are under our surveillance now. All the American aircraft carriers are under our control. We know the number of American ships in the Indian Ocean and the Sea of Oman, and where they are in the Persian Gulf, and what they have in Qatar and Bahrain, and [we know about] their activity in Iraq. Even when American soldiers go to a hotel in Kuwait or Bahrain – we monitor them. We know their hotel in Bahrain, and were they go to eat and rest in Dubai. For example, we know the precise number of American troops in Kuwait. We know the names of their friends and the translators they employ. We know exactly what they are doing in Iraq and in other countries in the region, and we know where they get their meat and food. Our information is very precise. We bombed the Ayn Al-Assad base on the basis of detailed calculations. We knew that it was a very important site for the Americans that we had to strike."

Interviewer: "We heard the commanders of the IRGC making threats: In case of a strike against Iran, Iran will strike Israel. Is there really such a decision? If the U.S. attacks you, will you really strike Israel?"

Mohsen Rezaee: "You should have no doubt about this. We would raze Tel-Aviv to the ground for sure. We have been looking for such a pretext. If they do something, we can use it as a pretext to attack Israel, because Israel played a role in the martyrdom of General Soleimani. It was the Israelis who reported about the martyr Soleimani's trip from Damascus to Baghdad. We were waiting for the Americans to give us a pretext to strike Tel-Aviv, just like we attacked Ayn Al-Assad.

[...]

"American hegemony in the region is in a state of disintegration and instability. By proposing the 'Deal of the Century,' they are looking for a firm and stable foothold on the eastern shores of the Mediterranean Sea, in order to do away with the Palestinian Cause once and for all, and in order to take over Gaza and disarm Hamas.

[...]

"I expect a significant weakening of the U.S. over the next decade. If it does not leave the region completely, it will become very weak. As soon as the Saudi people and the peoples of the Persian Gulf feel that America is not what it used to be, there will be a revolution in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and it will be followed by revolutions in the other countries in the Persian Gulf.

[...]

"In a short time, everybody will be amazed to see the fall of the U.S. in the region. This means that the global collapse of the U.S. will begin in this region, West Asia. Iran will be the standard-bearer of America's exit from the region."