Monday, 14 November 2011
Iranian officials said a blast at a military installation near Tehran resulted from the explosion of rockets at a base for the missile forces of the Revolutionary Guard Corps. (Reuters)
Iran buried on Monday a senior military officer it called the “architect” of its missile defenses, killed in a massive explosion at a Revolutionary Guards’ arms depot on Saturday that authorities said was an accident.
Brigadier General Hassan Moqaddam was buried along with 16 other Revolutionary Guards who died in the explosion at their military base outside Tehran.
But a Western intelligence source told Time Magazine on Monday that Israel’s secret service Mossad was behind the explosion.
Brigadier General Hassan Moqaddam was buried along with 16 other Revolutionary Guards who died in the explosion at their military base outside Tehran.
But a Western intelligence source told Time Magazine on Monday that Israel’s secret service Mossad was behind the explosion.
“Don’t believe the Iranians that it was an accident,” the anonymous official said, adding that more sabotage is being planned to impede the Iranian ability to develop and deliver a nuclear weapon.
“There are more bullets in the magazine,” he said.
According to reports, the base stored Shahab-3 missiles and other surface-to-surface weapons.
Meanwhile U.S. blogger Richard Silverstein was the first to point a finger at the Mossad on Sunday. An Israeli official had told Silverstein that Israel’s secret service and an Iranian dissident group were responsible for the blast, according to his blog “Tikun Olam.”
The blast, which was so big that it was felt in the capital Tehran, some 45 km (28 miles) away, was blamed on accident which occurred as troops were moving munitions at the base west of the capital. Officials have denied suggestions that it may have been sabotage.
Moqaddam’s importance was underlined by the appearance of Khamenei at his funeral, Reuters reported, and a personal visit to his family by Defense Minister Ahmad Vahidi to convey Ahmadinejad’s condolences.
“Martyr Moqaddam was the main architect of the Revolutionary Guards’ canon and missile power and the founder of the deterrent power of our country,” Hossein Salami, the deputy head of the Revolutionary Guards, said in a eulogy at the funeral, state broadcaster IRIB reported.
The blast was likely to spark speculation over whether it was a planned attack or merely an accident amid rising tensions with Israel and the West over Iran’s nuclear program.
A report published by the United Nations nuclear agency last week that contained what it called credible evidence pointing to military dimensions to Iran’s atomic activities fueled demands in Washington and Europe for more sanctions on Tehran and increased talk of using military strikes to prevent it getting the bomb.
Khamenei responded by saying the Revolutionary Guards would “answer attacks with strong slaps and iron fists.”
Military experts say bombing Iran’s military sites would be more risky than similar actions Israel has made in the past in Iraq and Syria.
Iran has said several assassinations of nuclear scientists, and cyber attacks are covert operations by Israel and its allies to undermine the atomic work it says is entirely peaceful.
“There are more bullets in the magazine,” he said.
According to reports, the base stored Shahab-3 missiles and other surface-to-surface weapons.
Meanwhile U.S. blogger Richard Silverstein was the first to point a finger at the Mossad on Sunday. An Israeli official had told Silverstein that Israel’s secret service and an Iranian dissident group were responsible for the blast, according to his blog “Tikun Olam.”
The blast, which was so big that it was felt in the capital Tehran, some 45 km (28 miles) away, was blamed on accident which occurred as troops were moving munitions at the base west of the capital. Officials have denied suggestions that it may have been sabotage.
Moqaddam’s importance was underlined by the appearance of Khamenei at his funeral, Reuters reported, and a personal visit to his family by Defense Minister Ahmad Vahidi to convey Ahmadinejad’s condolences.
“Martyr Moqaddam was the main architect of the Revolutionary Guards’ canon and missile power and the founder of the deterrent power of our country,” Hossein Salami, the deputy head of the Revolutionary Guards, said in a eulogy at the funeral, state broadcaster IRIB reported.
The blast was likely to spark speculation over whether it was a planned attack or merely an accident amid rising tensions with Israel and the West over Iran’s nuclear program.
A report published by the United Nations nuclear agency last week that contained what it called credible evidence pointing to military dimensions to Iran’s atomic activities fueled demands in Washington and Europe for more sanctions on Tehran and increased talk of using military strikes to prevent it getting the bomb.
Khamenei responded by saying the Revolutionary Guards would “answer attacks with strong slaps and iron fists.”
Military experts say bombing Iran’s military sites would be more risky than similar actions Israel has made in the past in Iraq and Syria.
Iran has said several assassinations of nuclear scientists, and cyber attacks are covert operations by Israel and its allies to undermine the atomic work it says is entirely peaceful.
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