Iran says won’t back down in nuclear standoff

Iran Focus: Tehran, Iran, Dec. 22 – A top Iranian cleric told the West on Friday that it would fail in its attempts to hinder the Islamic Republic’s nuclear program.
Iran Focus

Tehran, Iran, Dec. 22 – A top Iranian cleric told the West on Friday that it would fail in its attempts to hinder the Islamic Republic’s nuclear program.

“Go ahead and issue a resolution if you want to. … Our nation will endure this and stand with strength against all your plots”, Ayatollah Ahmad Jannati, the chairman of the Guardians Council, said during his Friday prayers sermon in Tehran. His comments were aired on state television.

“Our nation will resist against your [plots”> until the end”, he said.

The United Nations Security Council is scheduled to vote on Saturday in New York on a European-drafted resolution imposing mild sanctions on Tehran for failing to suspend its uranium enrichment activities.

If the 15-member council adopts the resolution, Iran would become one of only 11 countries in the world to be facing a UN embargo.

“Our enemies should come to their senses. They should think about what they have achieved in their 28 years of enmity towards this nation. Has our nation ever surrendered?” Jannati said. “Our nation has always stood firm and resisted and chanted, ‘Death to America’ and ‘Death to Israel’, ignoring all your plots”.