General Hejazi on the state of Iran’s defense and Gaza

From Fars News Agency:

A senior Iranian commander said that Iran's military is making continued progress with daily innovations in different fields.

"Iranian military progresses have reached the point that we are witnessing innovations, developments and inventions in the equipments sector on a daily basis," Lieutenant Commander of Iran's Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) General Seyed Mohammad Hejazi told reporters Saturday night in Iran's northern city of Amol.

The General further stressed preparedness of the Iranian military forces to defend the country and its borders.

Referring to Israel's failure in the 22-day-long war against the defenseless people of Gaza, he added, "The equipments employed by the Zionist regime (of Israel) in this unequal war were today's most advanced weapons in the world."

Noting the Israelis' premeditated plan, the commander assessed that the Zionist regime did not expect Gazans would continued resistance to the end.

Israeli forces failed to attain their military objectives after 22 days of attacks on Gaza's civilians, houses, mosques and schools in which 1400 people died and over 5500 others wounded, most of them women and children.

"The Islamic Resistance's tactics were not known to them (Israelis)," he added, explaining the reason underlying the Israeli army's failure in attaining its goals through the onslaught against Gaza.

The strike on Gaza by Israeli forces must be under study by Iranian and Hezbollah tacticians. Despite Hejazi's brave words, the Hamas defense is probably looked upon as something of a disappointment.

Design of Iranian Stealth Fighter completed

From Tehran Times:

Iran has completed the design phase of its stealth aircraft, the commander of the Iranian Air Force announced here on Sunday.

Iranian military researchers are now working on building small prototypes of the aircraft, Brigadier General Hassan Shah-Safi told reporters in Tehran.

The preliminary stages will be finished in late March and then production will begin, he stated.

Iranian engineers have made a major breakthrough in designing stealth aircraft that are difficult to detect by radar.

Shah-Safi said that the Air Force has also tested a new air-to-air heat-seeking missile manufactured by the Iranian military.

The new missile, which has a range of 100 kilometers, will be mass-produced by the Ministry of Defense, he added.

Gaza aid ship held up by Egypt

From PressTV:

An Iranian aid ship bound for Gaza has not yet received permission to dock at the Egyptian port of Al-Areesh, 50km off the coastal strip.

Ahmad Navvab, a provincial Red Crescent director, said Wednesday that although Egyptian authorities issued permits for the aid's dispatch via the Al-Areesh port, they have so far prevented the ship to drop anchor.

"Their pretext is that the port is at full capacity and lacks necessary space for another ship," said Navvab, adding that Egyptian authorities issued permits only after coming under international pressure.

Navvab said the vessel, holding an estimated 2,000 tons of medical and food supplies for the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, is currently anchored some 15 miles off the coast of Gaza.

This comes after the Israeli military intercepted an Iranian ship on January 14, even though it left the Egyptian port of Said with the paperwork required to dock.

Egypt, the only state which shares border with the Gaza Strip, has been coordinating all activity with Israel regarding the Iranian vessel.

Israel intercepts Iranian ship headed for Gaza

From The Jerusalem Post:

The [Israeli] Navy is closely tracking an Iranian ship that has attempted several times to breach the naval blockade imposed on Gaza and transport humanitarian aid to the Palestinians.

On Tuesday, the boat docked in Port Said, Egypt, but the Egyptians refused to allow it to unload its cargo and at midnight Wednesday the boat tried sailing into Gaza.
A Navy Sa'ar 4.5-class missile ship intercepted the Iranian boat and transmitted a clear message on Channel 16 - the international communication line for ships - that it would not allow the boat to dock in Gaza.

On Wednesday morning, when it was 30 miles off the Gaza coast, the Iranian boat again tried to move toward the Strip, and the Navy again intercepted it. It then returned to el-Arish, Egypt, and two Egyptian boats prevented it from docking there.
Since that time, the boat has been sitting 30 miles off the coast of Gaza and is being closely tracked by the Israeli navy. Israel and the Egyptians have been coordinating all activity regarding the Iranian boat.

The head of the humanitarian aid group sponsoring the ship, Ahmad Navabi, said in comments aired on Iranian television Wednesday that the Israeli navy approached the cargo ship, Shahed, about 20 miles off the coast of Gaza at dawn Wednesday, and ordered it to turn back.

"An Israeli warship approached our cargo ship and warned us not to approach Gaza. We could see the lights at Gaza coast. We were forced to change route toward an Egyptian port," Navabi said.

This is the first Iranian boat to try to reach Gaza during the blockade. On December 30, a boat carrying activists and medical supplies to Gaza was turned back after an altercation with the Israeli navy. Israeli officials said the boat tried to outmaneuver an Israeli navy ship and crashed into it, lightly damaging both vessels.

Iran's Anti-Pirate Exercise

Reading List - Jan. 11, 2009

-U.S. Rejected Aid for Israeli Raid on Iranian Nuclear Site
By David E. Sanger
New York Times

-Iran Using Fronts to Get Bomb Parts From U.S.
By Joby Warrick
Washington Post

Farhi's Analysis

There is a well written piece by Professor Farideh Fahri over at Informed Comment: Global Affairs. It is titled "Israel, Gaza War, Return of "Emboldened Iran," and Obama. Below is an excerpt:

A curious pattern characterizes the recent military adventures in the Middle East. Overwhelming and disproportionate force is utilized in the name of at least temporarily popular objective – combating terrorism, preventing WMD proliferation, restoring deterrence, bringing democracy and so on. But once the human costs and efficacy of attacks in terms of stated objectives begin to be questioned, the narrative shifts and the argument for the sustenance of war, refusal of ceasefire, or even the need for “victory” begins to rely on the line that if a certain party or organization in question is not crushed, all the extremist forces in the Middle East led by Iran will be emboldened.

Read the rest by clicking here.

Iran’s Defense Minister speaks out on Gaza

From Tehran Times:

Iranian Defense Minister Mostafa Mohammad-Najjar on Saturday praised the strong resistance against Israel army by the Gaza people and predicted the Zionist regime will face “more humiliating” defeat than it faced in its 33-day war with Lebanon’s Hezbollah in 2006.

Talking at a Defense Diplomacy Committee meeting, Najjar described the Gaza war as a war between the “paganism and Islam” and said that the Muslim world must rise up to defend the innocent people of Gaza.

Referring to the “war of nerves” against Iran in regard to Gaza, he said Iranians’ moral support for Gazans do not abdicate the Arab countries’ responsibility toward the Gaza tragedy.

He said certain countries’ complicity with the Zionists encouraged this regime to mount a war against Gaza.

He noted the Security Council resolution will not deter Israel to stop genocide in Gaza, saying more serious decisions must be made to end the crimes in Gaza.

Reading List - January 6, 2009

-Iran’s Postmodern Beast in Gaza
Robert D. Kaplan
The Atlantic


-Iran firms told: cut ties to “Zionist”-held firms
Hossein Jaseb and Hashem Kalantari
Reuters UK


-Iran Says 70,000 volunteer for Israel fight
Associated Press

Oil as a potential weapon

From Asharq Alawsat:

A Revolutionary Guard commander is calling on Islamic countries to use oil as a weapon to end the fighting in Gaza, echoing a similar call days earlier by lawmakers in Bahrain.

The demands by Mirfaysal Bagherzadeh, a brigadier-general in the elite Iranian military unit, are unlikely to lead to an immediate embargo as they don't come from the oil rich Persian Gulf nations' top rulers or carry the support of other major producers like Saudi Arabia.

But they do highlight the depth of anger in the region over the Israeli offensive and the threat it poses to oil prices that recently fell to their lowest levels in years.

Iran's official IRNA news agency on Sunday quoted Bagherzadeh as saying oil is "a strong factor of pressure" on supporters of Israel in the current "unequal war."
Bagherzadeh, who is in charge of war memorials and is not among the country's top oil officials, noted the West's dependance on energy resources from the Muslim world and called for a cut in crude exports to supporters of Israel, IRNA reported.

Iran's foreign ministry did not appear to distance itself from the comments when asked about them Monday.

"We do support any action for realizing two main steps: an immediate stop to the invasion and an end to the Gaza blockade," foreign ministry spokesman Hasan Qashqavi said.

The Iranian comments come days after members of Bahrain's lower house of parliament condemned Israeli attacks on Gaza and told the tiny kingdom's foreign minister that "all retaliation options" should remain open to Arab governments.

Lawmakers said Arab states should use economic weapons such as oil and the region's vast investment funds to put pressure on the West to help bring an end to the fighting.

Israeli Troops Enter Gaza

- Israeli ground forces today entered the Gaza Strip.

- Director of Iran's Supreme National Security Council Saeed Jalili arrived in Damascus earlier today for a meeting with Syrian President Bashar Al Assad to coordinate their response to the Israeli offensive in Gaza.

On Gaza

The repercussions of the Israeli bombardments of Gaza are being felt in the entire region.

1. Kadima/Labor move to a) unseat Hamas and b) gain upper hand in the upcoming elections against Bibi Netanyahu is not succeeding. Hamas popularity can increase in the aftermath of the tragic consequences of the bombardment of densely-populated areas. Hamas does not fall by aerial attack; it falls if the Gazans turn against it and accept Mahmoud Abbas as their leader, an unlikely scenario. An outcome similar to the 33-Day War can also play into the hands of Bibi Netanyahu, calling for change of an inept government.

2. The moderate Arab governments will pay a high price. The most precarious situation is in Egypt. Not that the Egyptians have found a new hero in Hamas. But with their lives in near economic ruins, they can find any excuse to hit back at their government. Mubarak’s supposedly prior knowledge of the Israeli attack and the closure of Rafah border crossing during the height of the humanitarian crisis in Gaza have further damaged his reputation that can only help the Muslim Brotherhood. The Jordanian and Saudi governments are also feeling the heat.

3. Hamas inability to wage an effective military response to the Israeli bombardments once again demonstrates the inherent military weakness of an organization that is more suited to carry out terrorist activities. Hamas, however weakened, can still survive the areal attacks. Defeating it requires wining the hearts and minds of the Gazans.

4. The Islamic Republic can come out of this conflict as the only winner. By taking the moral high ground, the Iranian government can solicit the support and sympathy of the Iranians as well as the public opinion in the region. The Israeli attack has also given Ahmadinejad a new window of opportunity to highlight his anti-Israeli credentials during the upcoming presidential elections. It also gave his government an excuse to close Kargozaran, a leading moderate newspaper supporting Rafsanjani, his arch enemy.

5. The real victims of the attacks are the Gazans, with more than 400 dead and thousands injured, and a country in ruins. The Palestinian people deserve a better fate: a stable government and a country of their own. The warring sides, the Israeli government and the Hamas, are the real obstacles to achieve those goals.

Iran Air Force on Full Alert

Iranian Air Force was put on full alert today in the wake of the continued Israeli raids on Gaza. IRIAF Commander Brig. Gen. Hassan Shah-Safi told reporters in Tehran that the ongoing situation in the Middle East has prompted the Iranian military to take necessary measures to ensure readiness in the event of the country becoming the target of an attack.

Pro-Gaza Protestors Storm British Compound

More than 70 protestors, believed to be affiliated with the Basiji forces of IRGC, stormed a British Embassy compound in Qolhak, in northern Tehran. The public opinion in Iran, like in many Middle Eastern countries, has solidly turned against Israel and the West in the aftermath of Israeli bombardment of Gaza and the many casualties it has caused.

The protestors have brought down the British flag and have raised the Palestinian flag inside the compound.

The Qolhak compound has in the past been used as the summer residence of the British Ambassador in Tehran. The large property, situated in one of choice locations in the Iranian capital, has been the center of an ownership controversy with the UK. Iranians believe that the British lease on the property has been expired and it needs to be handed back to Iran. Britain considers the property as an integral part of its embassy, protected by international law.

The occupation of the compound is not all that surprising, given the Iranian claim. What is surprising is the pretext of helping the Palestinian cause in occupying the compound. The Iranian public opinion could have much easier accepted the move if it was cast in Iran vs. Britain struggle. Tying the move to the developments in Gaza would be hard to comprehend and might backfire and help the British.

Notwithstanding the move, the Iranians are real angry at the events in Gaza. Even mainstream journalists are using profanities in referring to Israel, and the West, in their reporting of the bombardments. The West is rapidly loosing the public opinion and the media war regarding Gaza.

UPDATE: A media officer at the British embassy in Tehran confirmed reports that diplomatic police had driven the demonstrators out of the compound.

Suicide Bombing in Baluchistan

A suicide bomber, affiliated with the terrorist group Jundallah, killed four policemen and wounded a dozen in an attack on a police post in the town of Saravan, in Iranian Baluchistan, near the Pakistani border.

Suicide bombings are very rare in Iran. Jundallah, an Iranian Baluch militant group, has in the past two years attacked the police and revolutionary guards in the province. The group claimed responsibility for this recent attack and said in a statement that the attack was in retaliation for the authorities' destruction of a Sunni religious school in Zabol.

Last year, Jundallah attacked a bus carrying members of IRGC, killing a score of revolutionary guards. This month, the group killed all 16 of the border guards it had kidnapped in June. Jundallah had demanded the release of 200 of its members imprisoned by Iran in return for the border guards.

Political observers in Tehran believe that Jundallah is encouraged, if not directly supported, by the US to destabilize the Islamic Republic.

Jundallah enjoys its support in the predominantly Sunni minority areas of Sistan and Baluchistan, near eastern borders with Pakistan. Other militant groups, such as PJAK, also operate in Sunni regions of Kurdistan and Khuzestan, near western borders with Iraq. Sunni militant groups in the border regions are regarded as potential armed adversaries in any attempt to destabilize Tehran’s government. Terrorist attacks employed by Jundallah, however, are bound to further isolate these groups in the society, especially in the media and the public opinion.

Iranian MPs tell UN to halt Gaza Onslaught

From PressTV:

The Iranian parliament has urged the United Nations to make efforts to halt the atrocities Israel is committing against the Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip.

Majlis National Security and Foreign Policy Committee Chairman Alaeddin Boroujerdi conveyed the message of the Iranian lawmakers to Knut Ostby, the new UN Resident Coordinator in Iran, in Tehran on Tuesday.

In their message, the Iranian parliamentarians stated that the Israeli military attack on the Gaza Strip, which has killed over 380 Palestinians and injured about 1,800 others, is a clear act of genocide.

The MPs urged UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon to implement the provisions of the UN Security Council and to set up a special tribunal to try the Israeli war criminals who have committed the genocide, IRNA reported.

Ostby expressed regret over the humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip and described the measures taken by the UN to halt the Israeli invasion.

The UN secretary general has strongly condemned the Israeli attack on the Palestinian people and has urged Israel to stop the onslaught, he explained.

Interior Minister given power over law enforcement

From PressTV:

Commander-in-Chief of Iran's Armed Forces has placed the country's Law Enforcement Agency under the interior minister's supervision.

The Leader of the Islamic Revolution, Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, agreed on Monday to a request by Iran's Interior Minister Sadeq Mahsouli to transfer all responsibilities of the country's law enforcement organization to the newly-appointed minister.

"I grant you the position of deputy to the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces and will shortly communicate your official duties to you," Ayatollah Khamenei said in a letter to Mahsouli on Monday.

The Iranian interior minister had earlier made a request to the Leader asking for executive powers in the country's Law Enforcement Agency.

In his letter to Ayatollah Khamenei, Mahsouli argued that for the Interior Ministry to be able to fully ensure law and order in the country, the Law Enforcement Agency should be under his authority.

The new appointment comes as Iran has recently launched a campaign to crackdown on saboteurs targeting the country's moral values.

Iran’s reaction to Israel’s military strikes against Gaza

From Reuters:

Iran's Supreme Leader issued a religious decree to Muslims around the world on Sunday, ordering them to defend Palestinians in Gaza against Israeli attacks "in any way possible", state television reported.

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei also declared Monday a day of public mourning in Iran after Israel killed more than 280 Palestinians in two days of air strikes on Gaza.

"All Palestinian combatants and all the Islamic world's pious people are obliged to defend the defenceless women, children and people in Gaza in any way possible," Khamenei said.

"Whoever is killed in this legitimate defence, is considered a martyr," he said in a statement.

A religious decree is an official statement by a ranking religious leader that commands Muslims to carry out its message. While there is no religious and legal force behind it, Khamenei is respected by many Iranian and non-Iranian Shi'ites.

Khamenei criticised some Arab governments for their lack of response towards the Israeli raids.

"The even greater catastrophe is the encouraging silence of some Arab governments who claim to be Islamic," he said, also accusing the West of being indifferent to the killing of Palestinians.

Khamenei, Iran's most powerful authority, urged Muslim countries to punish Israeli leaders.

"The officials of this regime ... should be tried and punished for this crime by Islamic governments."

Khamenei's remarks were interpreted by some oil traders as a hint that Iran was calling on oil-producing Arab countries to disrupt energy shipments to Israel.

Tehran denounced Israel's attacks as "unforgivable" on Saturday. President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said the raids showed Israel's "weakness".

Explosion at armaments plant in Isfahan

Eight people have been killed in an explosion in an armaments plant in Isfahan province in central Iran, the semi-official Fars news agency reported on Sunday. The blast occurred late Saturday in a defense industries plant in Zarin Shahr. The cause of the blast is under investigation.

Ahmadinejad's 'alternative' Christmas message - Updated

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad offered a Christmas message broadcast on Britain’s Channel 4. Click here for the full text of the message.

Update: Video of the Channel 4 broadcast:

Reading List - December 22, 2008

-Israel vs. SAM: Iran's S-300
Sean O’Connor
IMINT & Analysis

-Will Tehran get Russian weapons or not?
Borzou Daragahi and Ramin Mostaghim
Babylon and Beyond, LA Times

-S-300s for Iran: an argument for peace
Ilya Kramnik
RIA Novosti