[Media-watch] 2 articles from Haaretz- will Iran be next - soon?

[Sigi D]

hi there,
enclosed are TWO articles from today's daily 'Haaretz'
 (Israel). I find them very worrying.
The language is familiar: but instead of Iraq the word
Iran is used and described as threat to the world; 
once again we have the 'axil of evil' vocabulary used,

and  weapons of mass destruction (nuclear) are thrown
in as well for good measure
Haven't we heard this one before? 
I am really concerned here.
Best, 
Sigi

http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/314484.html

Last Update: 04/07/2003 16:05
New Iranian missile threat worries Israel 
By Amir Oren, Haaretz Correspondent and Haaretz
Service

Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom said Friday he hoped
the International Atomic Energy Agency and
international powers would pressure Iran to allow
weapons inspectors into the country and to sign
additional nonproliferation agreements
guaranteeing that it has no intention to develop
nuclear weapons. 

Shaloms comments come after the
publication in Haaretz that
Iran tested a Shihab-3 missile,
which has a range that can
reach Israel. 

"The radical regime in Iran is
threatening the stability not
only of the state of Israel,
but the European countries

also," Shalom said. "Iran is a danger to the
stability of all the world." 

The launch last week was the most successful so
far of the seven or eight tests of the missile
over the last five years, and has increased
worries in Washington - which spotted the test
with its tracking mechanisms - and in Israel. 

If the assessment proves to be true that the
missile, which was launched from east to west,
had an effective range beyond the
1,300-kilometer red line, meaning the range
from western Iran to Israel, the Iranians could
position the launching pads for the rocket
deeper inside their country. 

The Iranian threat will be one of the subjects
under discussion when Chief of Staff Moshe
Ya'alon visits the Pentagon and U.S. armed
forces bases next week. Ya'alon's itinerary is
supposed to include the Florida headquarters of
two key commands: Centcom and Special
Operations at MacDill air force base. 

More data is now being collected and collated in
the West about the missile test and about the
progress being made in the Iranian missile 
program, which is based on North Korean
missiles. In previous tests, when the rocket
was powered by a North Korean engine, the tests
were successful, but when the engines were
Iranian-made, even with North Korean know-how,
they tended to fail - despite statements by
Iranian Defense Minister Ali Shakhmani in 2002
that Iran can "develop everything" and does not
need help from foreign sources like China or
Russia. 

The report of the Shihab-3 test is an incentive
for Israel equipping itself with more Arrow
missiles made by the Israel Aircrafts 
Industries and soon to go into a joint
production process with Boeing. 

Israel is also concerned about the growing ties
between Iran and Libya. Indeed, the Libyan
threat is now the reason for a third Arrow
battery even though the Iraqi threat is gone.
One response to the Libyan threat would be an
Arrow battery mounted on a naval vessel. 

Western experts said that the 16-meter
single-stage Shihab-3, which can carry up to a
ton of explosives in its payload, is not very
accurate, with the probability of hitting
within three kilometers of any target it is
launched at. But it is possible that has been
improved over the past year. In any case, the
missile range already includes Israel, Turkey, 
the Indian subcontinent and the American forces
in the Gulf. Iran has plans for two
longer-range missiles: a Shihab-4, with a
2,000-kilometer range and a Shihab-5, with a
5,500-kilometer range. 

The last Shihab missile test resulted in a Bush
administration statement expressing "serious
concerns" about the Iranian missile project,
which is a "threat to the region and U.S.
interests." 

The next commander of Centcom, Gen. John
Abizaid, who replaces Tommy Franks on Monday,
testified last week to a Senate committee that
"Iran has the largest ballistic missile
inventory in the Central Command region to
include long-range weapons of mass destruction
and delivery systems capable of reaching
deployed U.S. forces in the theater." And he
warned, "Iran's long-term ability to develop
nuclear weapons remains a source of serious
concern." 

He told the committee that "Iran casts a shadow
on security and stability in the Gulf region.
Iran's military is second only to the United
States. U.S. allies in the Gulf acknowledge
Iran's increasingly proactive efforts to soften
its image and appear less hegemonic; however,
Iran's military poses a potential threat to
neighboring countries." 	
The file photo of the Shihab-3 missile. (Reuters)
Related Links
* Analysis / `Axis of evil' stepping up mutual
cooperation 
* Head of Iranian missile project: Our rockets can
reach Israel 
* Iran got nuclear know-how from North Korea 

Last Update: 18/06/2003 02:54
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/pages/ShArt.jhtml?itemNo=304929&contrassID=1
Analysis / `Axis of evil' stepping up mutual
cooperation 
By Ze'ev Schiff

While Iran continues to deny international
suspicions that it is developing nuclear weapons,
U.S. intelligence and other intelligence services
have discovered that Libya is paying large sums of
money to Iran for expert aid to help develop a
mid-range missile. According to the information,
Tehran has been sending a team of ground-to-ground
missile experts to Libya to advance the Benghazi
program. 

The Iranian delegation, most
importantly, reveals the
secret, dangerous connection
among members of the coalition
that U.S. President George W.
Bush refers to as the "axis of
evil." Although the connection
involves only the missile
sphere at this time, it could
develop into the sharing of

nuclear munitions know-how. North Korea
provided Iran with the know-how and assistance
to develop the Shihab-3 missiles and gave Syria
the know-how to develop Scud-D missiles.
Tehran, in turn, has responded to Libya's
requests for help developing mid-range
missiles. 

Tehran is now in the advanced stages of
developing the Shihab-3, which could reach
Israel. However, some say Tehran still needs to
extend the missile's range by 100-300
kilometers in order to cover a large section of
Israel. 

Libya has old Scud missiles with a 300-km range,
and is making a major effort to acquire or
develop longer-range missiles. Tripoli is
examining the possibility with Tehran and is
ready to pay a high price for such assistance. 

Nuclear development is only one of the issues
bothering Washington. Another issue is Iranian
involvement in terrorism. The United States is
convinced that Al Qaida operatives who
organized the group's recent attack in Riyadh
were directly connected to Iran. In addition,
some of the equipment carried by a Hezbollah
officer who was captured on board a ship
heading to Gaza was made in Iran. The equipment
was meant to improve Qassam rockets by helping
them guarantee a more effective explosion. 

Despite signals reaching United States about
Iran's readiness to negotiate with the
administration on various issues, it is clear
to Washington that these are only false
attempts meant to gain time to develop nuclear
weapons and to divert the Americans onto the
diplomatic track, away from tougher measures. 


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