Iran warns Israel to fear its 2,000-km missiles

Tehran, Iran (AP)- An Iranian hard-line cleric warned Israel Tuesday that Iran's 2,000-kilometer missiles will land in Tel Aviv if the Jewish state attacks Iran, state-run television reported.

Ahmad Khatami, a middle-ranking cleric, said Israel should bear in mind its monthlong war with Lebanon's Hizbullah's guerrillas before threatening Iran.

Boasting that Hizbullah's 70-kilometer range missiles "turned Israel into a country of ghosts," Khatami declared that Israel would face dire consequences if it "makes an iota of aggression against Iran."

"They must fear the day (Iran's) 2,000-kilometer range missiles land in the heart of Tel Aviv," he said.

Khatami is a Friday prayer leader in Teheran and a member of the Assembly of Experts, a clerical panel that has the power to choose or dismiss Iran's top leader, but he is not considered a government official.