Iran to fire '11,000 rockets in minute' if attacked
TEHRAN (AFP) - Iran warned on Saturday it would fire off 11,000 rockets at enemy bases within the space of a minute if the United States launched military action against the Islamic republic.
"In the first minute of an invasion by the enemy, 11,000 rockets and cannons would be fired at enemy bases," said a brigadier general in the elite Revolutionary Guards, Mahmoud Chaharbaghi.
"This volume and speed of firing would continue," added Chaharbaghi, who is commander of artillery and missiles of the Guards' ground forces, according to the semi-official Fars news agency.
The United States has never ruled out attacking Iran to end its defiance over the controversial Iranian nuclear programme, which the US alleges is aimed at making nuclear weapons but Iran insists is entirely peaceful.
Iran has for its part vowed never to initiate an attack but has also warned of a crushing response to any act of aggression against its soil.
"If a war breaks out in the future, it will not last long because we will rub their noses in the dirt," said Chaharbaghi.
"Now the enemy should ask themselves how many of their people they are ready to have sacrificed for their stupidity in attacking Iran," he said.
Iranian officials have repeatedly warned the military would target the bases of US forces operating in neighbouring Iraq and Afghanistan in the event of any attack and already has these sites under close surveillance.
Chaharbaghi said that the Guards would soon receive "rockets with a range of 250 kilometres (155 miles)" whereas the current range of its rockets is 150 kilometres (91 miles).
"We have identified our targets and with a close surveillance of targets, we can respond to the enemy's stupidity immediately," Chaharbaghi added.
He said that the Guards' weapons were spread out throughout the country and so would not be affected by any isolated US strikes against military facilities.
The Guards are Iran's elite ideological army and responsible for its most significant weapons such as the longer range Shahab-3 missile which has Israel and US bases in the Middle East within its range.
Original article posted here.
Showing posts with label deterrence. Show all posts
Showing posts with label deterrence. Show all posts
Saturday, October 20, 2007
Tuesday, August 07, 2007
Iran not rolling over and playing dead
Iran shows off homegrown fighter jet
IRAN overnight showed off for the first time a new fighter jet said to be modelled on the American F-5 but built using domestic technology, state media reported.
The "Azarakhsh" (Lightning) jet - one of the first to be home-produced by Iran - made a successful flight in the central city of Isfahan in a ceremony attended by Defence Minister Mostafa Mohammad Najjar and other officials.
"The success of this domestically developed fighter plane is another example of the technological achievements of our country," said Isfahan governor Morteza Bakhtiari, according to the state-run IRNA news agency.
"At a time when the United States is selling its arms to its allies in the region, our country's specialists are taking big strides every day towards self-sufficiency in defence," he said.
The development of the plane was first announced in September last year, when military officials said that it was "comparable" to the US F-5 fighter jet.
Iran has also developed another homemade war plane named "Saegheh" (Thunder), which it has described as similar to the American F-18 fighter jet.
The fly-by in Isfahan appears to have been the first time the Azarakhsh jet has been shown in public.
Many of Iran's military planes are of American origin and were bought under the pro-US shah ousted by the Islamic revolution in 1979.
The current US embargo means the Iran must work hard to find spare parts to keep its fleet in the air, and officials have repeatedly emphasised the importance of moving towards self-sufficiency in defence.
The United States last week announced new military pacts worth $US20 billion ($23.35 billion) for Saudi Arabia, $US13 billion ($15.18 billion) for Egypt and $US30 billion ($35.02 billion) for Israel in a bid to counter Iran's regional influence.
Iran dismissed the deals as "fruitless" but insisted it was not worried by the moves.
Original article posted here.
IRAN overnight showed off for the first time a new fighter jet said to be modelled on the American F-5 but built using domestic technology, state media reported.
The "Azarakhsh" (Lightning) jet - one of the first to be home-produced by Iran - made a successful flight in the central city of Isfahan in a ceremony attended by Defence Minister Mostafa Mohammad Najjar and other officials.
"The success of this domestically developed fighter plane is another example of the technological achievements of our country," said Isfahan governor Morteza Bakhtiari, according to the state-run IRNA news agency.
"At a time when the United States is selling its arms to its allies in the region, our country's specialists are taking big strides every day towards self-sufficiency in defence," he said.
The development of the plane was first announced in September last year, when military officials said that it was "comparable" to the US F-5 fighter jet.
Iran has also developed another homemade war plane named "Saegheh" (Thunder), which it has described as similar to the American F-18 fighter jet.
The fly-by in Isfahan appears to have been the first time the Azarakhsh jet has been shown in public.
Many of Iran's military planes are of American origin and were bought under the pro-US shah ousted by the Islamic revolution in 1979.
The current US embargo means the Iran must work hard to find spare parts to keep its fleet in the air, and officials have repeatedly emphasised the importance of moving towards self-sufficiency in defence.
The United States last week announced new military pacts worth $US20 billion ($23.35 billion) for Saudi Arabia, $US13 billion ($15.18 billion) for Egypt and $US30 billion ($35.02 billion) for Israel in a bid to counter Iran's regional influence.
Iran dismissed the deals as "fruitless" but insisted it was not worried by the moves.
Original article posted here.
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