Tuesday, October 16, 2012

Iran Lifts Its Game

Iran seems determined to up the ante.
It has developed a new class of drones, able to conduct both reconnaissance and bombardment missions.
You'll recall that last week Israeli Air Force jets shot down an unidentified drone in Israeli airspace. Hezbollah claimed responsibility for the drone, saying it had been made by Israel's arch-enemy Iran. The Iranian Defence Minister praised Hezbollah's efforts against Israel, saying it proved Iran's military capabilities.
The new Iranian drone is capable of undertaking both reconnaissance and attack missions. Called Hazem, it's produced in three versions (short-, mid- and long-range), and can be equipped with missiles and used for aerial bombardments.
Iran's new capabilities come after it managed to obtain technical information from a US RQ-170 stealth drone captured last year. And in 2010, Iran unveiled a prototype long-range unmanned bomber, saying at the time it should seek the ability to make pre-emptive strikes against a perceived threat, although it would never strike first (hmmm, is that not EXACTLY what pre-emptive means?).
So Iran is openly supplying an aggressive Israeli neighbour with drones, capable of delivering missiles deep into Israeli territory. Not only does this escalate the tension between Israel and Hezbollah, but it effectively means Iran is attempting those same pre-emptive strikes under the guise of Palestinian actions.
But if Iran thinks Israel hasn't figured this out long ago, if it thinks Israel will just sit back and happily TAKE these attacks…it must be more stupid than its rabid president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad constantly appears.

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