President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad announced the test in a bellicose speech in which he warned the country would press ahead with its nuclear programme. "The defence minister (Mohammad Mostafa Najjar) told me today that we launched a Sejil-2 missile, which is a two-stage missile and it has reached the intended target," Ahmadinejad said in a speech in the northern town of Semnan. "I was told that the missile is able to go beyond the atmosphere then come back and hit its target. It works on solid fuel," Ahamdinejad added to cheers from the crowd. He did not specify the missile's range. Mr Najjar told the television in November that the new missile had "a range of close to 2,000 kilometres (1,350 miles)," which is similar to that of the Shahab-3 and sufficient to put Iran's regional enemy Israel in range. State television has broadcast footage of the launch of the missile which is similar in size to Iran's medium-range Shahab 3. Western analysts have frequently questioned Iran's claims about new missiles. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netayahu has said Iran's missile technology and controversial nuclear programme pose an existential threat to the Jewish state greater than any it has faced since its creation in 1948. Iran insists that its nuclear programme is aimed solely at producing electricity for a growing population once its fossil fuels run out. But Israel - which has the region's sole if undeclared nuclear arsenal - suspects it is cover for a drive for the bomb. The UN Security Council has imposed three packages of sanctions against Iran after it failed to heed successive ultimatums to suspend uranium enrichment, the process which makes fuel for nuclear power stations but in highly extended form can also produce the fissile core of an atomic bomb. But President Ahmadinejad again insisted on Wednesday that Iran would not give in to any pressure over its nuclear programme. "They (Western governments) said if you don't stop, we will adopt (sanctions) resolutions," the Iranian president said. "They thought we would retreat but that will not happen." "I told them you can adopt 100 sets of sanctions but nothing will change." Sejil, the name of the new missile, is a Koranic term referring to stones thrown by birds sent by God to defeat an army of elephants with whom the king of Yemen wanted to destroy Mecca 14 centuries ago.Iran fires missile capable of hitting Israel
Iran has claimed to have test-fired a new medium-range surface to surface missile capable of reaching Israel.
Wednesday, 20 May 2009
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