Iran test-fires new missile, Israel, US bases within reach
TEHRAN: Iran said it test-fired a new generation of surface-to-surface missile on Wednesday and was ready to defend itself against any attacker.
Defence Minister Mostafa Mohammad Najjar said the Sejil missile had ‘extremely high capabilities’ and was only intended for defensive purposes.
He said it had a range of close to 2,000 kilometres. That would enable it to reach Israel and US bases in the Gulf. “This missile test is in the framework of Iran’s deterrent doctrine,” the IRNA news agency quoted him as saying. “It will only land on the heads of those enemies,” said Najjar, without mentioning any country by name.
The US denounced Iran’s claimed missile test and warned Tehran to halt its ballistic missile programme ‘immediately’ amid a nuclear dispute with the West.
“We’ve consistently pointed out that Iran’s missile programme is a concern and this testing is another reminder of the importance of establishing a missile defence site in Poland and the Czech Republic to defend the US and Europe against a threat that is developing in Iran,” Pentagon spokesman Bryan Whitman told reporters. agencies
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| Saturday, February 28, 2004
