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'Father Of All Bombs': Iran Sends Warning As US, Israel Weigh Renewed Strikes On Tehran

The warning comes days after reports that the United States is weighing the use of its own 'Mother of All Bombs' against Iranian targets.

'Father Of All Bombs': Iran Sends Warning As US, Israel Weigh Renewed Strikes On Tehran
The threat is a response to the US weapon, the GBU-43/B Massive Ordnance Air Blast, or MOAB.
NDTV

Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has said it is preparing to unveil a new weapon it calls the "father of all bombs".

The warning comes days after reports that the United States is weighing the use of its own "Mother of All Bombs" against Iranian targets.

IRGC spokesperson Hossein Mohebbi made the remarks on Wednesday, in statements carried by Iran's state-affiliated Young Journalists Club news agency.

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"We are in the stage of preparing to unveil the 'father of all bombs.' This is something new for the enemy," he said.

He gave no details on what the weapon is, how powerful it is or when it will be shown. It is also unclear whether it is a bomb, a missile or another system.

The threat is a response to the US weapon, the GBU-43/B Massive Ordnance Air Blast, or MOAB. It weighs about 9,800 kg (22,000 lb) and is among the largest non-nuclear bombs in the US arsenal.

It was first used in combat in April 2017, during Donald Trump's first term, against a Daesh tunnel complex in Afghanistan.

CNN reported that the US military has drawn up plans to use it against Iran. Trump said last week that he was considering dropping it on Pickaxe Mountain, a deeply buried nuclear site Iran calls Kooh Kolang. 

In a Newsmax interview on October 15, he did not rule out its use and called it "not nuclear at all". Weapons specialists told the New York Times that the bomb explodes above ground and would be unlikely to destroy a granite-buried site.

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It must also be dropped from a slow MC-130 transport plane, which would be vulnerable to Iranian air defences.

The exchange comes as the US and Israel prepare for a possible new phase of the war, which is now nearly eight months old. The New York Times reported on Wednesday that the two militaries have drawn up specific plans for strikes after the American midterm elections on November 3.

The likely targets are Iran's energy infrastructure, nuclear sites, and missile and drone arsenal. Trump has repeatedly called off planned attacks, including one early this month, the paper said.

Iranian officials have promised to widen their retaliation beyond ships and energy facilities to data centres and undersea internet cables. They say any fighting will be neither quick nor limited.

The "father of all bombs" label is not new. In 2017, an IRGC commander claimed Iran had built a 10-tonne bomb of that name. Russia has also used the nickname for its own thermobaric weapon.

ALSO READ | Why Iran Is In No Hurry To Strike Deal With Trump Before November 3 Midterm Test

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