Is Iranian Response to Israel Rational, Reasonable?
Many Israeli officials and commentators interpret an Iranian general's statements about a "pre-emptive strike" as an escalation of the threat against the Jewish state. Al-Monitor's Yossi Melman attributies the warning to psychological warfare, writing that Iran's leaders have so far behaved rationally and know their limitations.
A few days ago General Amir Ali Hajizadeh, commander of the Air Force and Space wing of Iran's Revolutionary Guards Corps, said in a TV interview that his country "would not open a war" but may consider initiating a "pre-emptive strike" if it is certain that the "enemy" plans to attack Iran.
Israeli officials and commentators rush to interpret the statement by concluding that it reflects another Iranian "threat" against the Jewish state and new "tension and escalation."
