AFP, Tehran :Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei urged the country’s armed forces Sunday to increase their “defensive preparedness”, hitting out at a US warning of possible military action.He told commanders and troops in a speech that Iran “will never accept such stupid remarks”, a jab at General Martin Dempsey, chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, though he did not name him.Dempsey said Thursday that should ongoing diplomacy with Iran fail, “the military option… to ensure that Iran does not achieve a nuclear weapon is intact.”The United States has long said targeted bombingof Iran’s nuclear sites and other key facilities may be needed if Tehran — which denies seeking the bomb — does not rein in its atomic activities.”All bodies from the ministry of defence to the army and the Sepah (Revolutionary Guards) should increase their military and defensive preparedness. This should be regarded as an official directive,” Khamenei said.
