Ahmadinejad says Iran can 'break' enemies

TEHRAN, Oct. 7 (UPI) -- Iran has the ability to break the strength of its enemies, said Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad of economic sanctions.

The U.N. Security Council in June slapped Iran with sanctions that are meant to punish Tehran for its nuclear work. The European Union, the United States and several of their allies followed suit by passing sanctions that target the country's energy sector.

Tehran has remained defiant in the face of the sanctions, even after Washington targeted eight individuals for human rights abuses in the country.

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said that no "outside force" can undermine the scientific progress in his country.

"They seek a psychological warfare to break the strength of the Iranian nation but it is the Iranian nation which will break them," he was quoted by state-funded broadcaster Press TV as saying.

Tehran claimed an "electronic war" was launched against its nuclear program when the so-called Stuxnet worm infected the personal computers of the staff at the Bushehr nuclear facility.

Ahmadinejad is scheduled to visit southern Lebanon next week, the Lebanese stronghold of Shiite opposition group Hezbollah.