US Fifth Fleet says won't allow Hormuz disruption (3)

"SHOWING THEIR TEETH"

The United States and Israel have not ruled out military action if sanctions fail to rein in Iran's nuclear work.

An Iranian analyst who declined to be named said the leadership could not reach a compromise with the West over its nuclear activities as it "would harm its prestige among its core supporters".

As a result, he said, "Iranian officials are showing their teeth to prevent a military strike".

But he added that closing the Strait of Hormuz would harm Iran's economy, undermining the Iranian leadership ahead of a parliamentary election in March.

The election will be the first litmus test of the clerical establishment's popularity since the 2009 disputed presidential vote, that the opposition says was rigged to secure Ahmadinejad's re-election.

The vote was followed by eight months of anti-government street protests and created a deepening political rift among the hardline rulers.

With the opposition leaders under house arrest since February and the main reformist political parties banned since the vote, Iranian hardline rulers are concerned a low turnout would question the establishment's legitimacy.

Frustration is simmering among lower- and middle-class Iranians over Ahmadinejad's economic policies. Prices of most consumer goods have risen substantially and many Iranians struggle to make ends meet.