Monday, Jul 21, 2003
Iran inducts missile
TEHERAN JULY 20. Iran equipped its elite Revolutionary Guards on Sunday with a locally made ballistic missile — the Shahab-3 — capable of reaching Israel and U.S. forces stationed in Saudi Arabia and Turkey.
The missile was officially inaugurated during a military parade before Iran's Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who is in charge of the country's armed forces, state-run Teheran Television reported.
``Today, the Iranian nation and armed forces ... is prepared to stand up to the enemy with a firm resolve anywhere,'' Ayatollah Khamenei was quoted as saying. The missile's official deployment comes after its final testing several weeks ago, Iranian officials said.
The Shahab-3 has a range of about 1,296 km, making it able to reach Israel and U.S. troops stationed in Saudi Arabia, Afghanistan, Pakistan and Turkey. Earlier this month, the Israeli newspaper Haaretz reported that the missile's recent testing was its most successful of seven or eight launches during the past five years. — AP
Copyright © 2003, The Hindu. Republication or redissemination of the contents of this screen are expressly prohibited without the written consent of The Hindu