Talk Radio News Service: News, Politics, Media

The apparent shift in power from Iran’s government to the country’s Revolutionary Guard signals the rise of a military dictatorship, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said Tuesday.

“The Government of Iran, the supreme leader, the president, the parliament, is being supplanted,” Clinton explained during a town hall exchange at a Qatar-based university. “Iran is moving toward a military dictatorship.”

Clinton down-played the possibility of a U.S. led attack against the Islamic Republic, stating that the sanctions being pursued currently by the U.S. should offset the need for military action.

“We are planning to try to bring the world community together in applying pressure to Iran through sanctions adopted by the United Nations that will be particularly aimed at those enterprises controlled by the Revolutionary Guard,” Clinton said.

However, the Secretary did stress that the U.S. will be prepared to defend itself if the needed.

“We will always defend ourselves,” said Clinton. “We will always defend our friends and allies. And we will certainly defend countries here in the Gulf who face the greatest immediate nearby threat from Iran.”