‘Dangerous and Defiant’: Israel Blasts Iran’s Satellite Launch, Warns of Nuclear Threat

The Iranian regime “continues to focus its efforts on military aggression,” instead of rectifying its “failure in dealing with the coronavirus outbreak,” said a statement from Israel.

By Aryeh Savir, TPS

Israel “strongly” condemned Iran’s attempt to launch a military satellite by its Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) and warned that the Islamic Republic is seeking to develop missiles that carry nuclear warheads.

The IRGC announced Wednesday that it had successfully launched a missile carrying Iran’s first satellite which entered orbit some 425km above the earth.

There was no immediate independent confirmation that the launch was a success, and Iran has previously failed in similar attempts. The statement from Israel’s Foreign Ministry describing Iran’s “attempt to launch a military satellite” may indicate that it was a failure.

Noting that the IRGC is a U.S.-designated “foreign terror organization,” Israel said that the attempt to launch a satellite “is just a façade for Iran’s continued development of advanced missile technology, both intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBM) and missiles that can carry a nuclear warhead.”

“Today’s launch is a breach both of Security Council’s resolution 2231, and Iran’s previous commitments to the international community,” Israel charged.

UNSC resolution 2231 from July 2015 endorsed the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPA) on Iran’s nuclear program and explicitly prohibits Iran from tests and other activity with ballistic missiles designed to be capable of delivering nuclear weapons.

Israel further charged that the Iranian regime “continues to focus its efforts on military aggression, instead of mending its failure in dealing with the coronavirus outbreak, that has affected tens of thousands of Iran’s citizens.”

Iran has registered over 86,000 Coronavirus cases and over 5,400 deaths in one of the worst outbreaks in the world. The number of deaths may be far higher.

Israel called on the international community to condemn the latest launch and impose further sanctions on the Iranian regime “to deter it from continuing such dangerous and defiant activity.”

Iran claims its military development is for defense purposes only. However, many of the weapons in question were given to the Hezbollah terror organization and used against Israel’s civilian population during the Second Lebanon War in the summer of 2006.

Iran has demonstrated its missile capabilities in attacks on the Islamic State (ISIS) in Syria and more recently in Saudi Arabia.

Iran has repeatedly threatened to use its missiles against Israel.