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Iran Vows to Use 'Smart' Bomb
on Enemies
AP
Monday Aug 27, 2007
Iran vowed Sunday
to use a new 2,000-pound "smart" bomb against its enemies
and unveiled mass production of the new weapon, state television
reported.
The government first announced development of the long-range
guided bomb Thursday, saying it could be deployed by the country's
aging U.S.-made F-4 and F-5 fighter jets.
"We will use these (bombs) against our enemies when the
time comes," Defense Minister Mostafa Mohammad Najjar said
on state television Sunday.
Iran often announces new weapons for its arsenal, but the United
States maintains that while the Islamic Republic has made some
strides, many of these statements are exaggerations.
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The broadcast included a brief clip of a fighter jet apparently
dropping one of the bombs, which destroyed a target on the ground.
The defense minister continued his threats as state television
showed him unveiling a mass production line for the weapon in
Tehran.
"We will use this weapon where we want to ... hit enemy's
strategic and defense targets," Najjar said. "This will
be used against our enemies, against those who violate our land
and air space."
Israel said the claim underlines its concerns over Iran's arms
buildup.
"All countries of the Middle East, Israel included, are
concerned about expansionist Iranian policies, and about their
aggressive military arms buildup," Israel's Foreign Ministry
spokesman Mark Regev said. "There is no doubt that the regime
in Tehran poses a very real threat to the peace and security of
the region as a whole."
The United States and Israel accuse Iran of developing nuclear
bombs, a charge Tehran denies. Iran's president has said Israel
should be wiped off the map and Israel considers Iran its main
enemy.
Emanuel Winston, a Middle East analyst at the Houston-based Freeman
Center for Strategic Studies, said Thursday that Iran's smart
bomb claim sounded "plausible" but said that it would
be less dangerous than a missile development program given the
limited range of the country's aircraft.
Najjar was more aggressive, saying the bomb "remarkably
increases Iran's defense capabilities."
Iran launched its own arms development program during its 1980-88
war with Iraq in response to a U.S.-led arms embargo. Since 1992,
the country has produced its own tanks, armored personnel carriers,
and missiles.
Earlier this month, Iran said it had started industrial-scale
production of its own fighter jet, known as Azarakhsh or Lightning,
to upgrade its elderly air force, much of which dates from before
the 1979 revolution.
Iran last year test-fired a "ultra-horizon" missile,
two powerful torpedoes and a Fajr-e Darya missile capable of avoiding
radars and hitting several targets simultaneously using multiple
warheads during large military maneuvers in the Persian Gulf.
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INFOWARS:
BECAUSE THERE'S A WAR ON FOR YOUR MIND
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